Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of TARDIS
by BentleyGirl
Summary: After following Dialga through the Time Vortex, the 10th Doctor finds himself stranded in the PMD world as a Pokemon without his memory, so the Legendary Sprites summon his companions to become Pokemon, rescue him and help him save the land from a sinister alien force. FULL SUMMARY INSIDE. Read and review.
1. Prologue

**This story came from an idea I was thinking of a few months ago, when I was searching the Doctor Who/Pokémon crossovers in the website and discovered how few PMD stories there were involving the Doctor and any of his companions. The summary is as follows:**

**After being attacked by a mysterious shadow in the TARDIS, the Doctor wakes up to find he's been turned into a Pokémon, he's lost his memory, and he's stranded in the world of Pokémon Mystery Dungeons. While he befriends the main Exploration team, the Legendary Beings gather the most powerful Psychic Pokémon to help fight an unknown force on their world and to help the Doctor recover his memories. Their plan – to bring some of his most loyal companions to their world to find his missing possessions, recover the TARDIS and locate the amnesiac Time Lord in time to save their world…**

**Time placement: Between "Planet of the Dead" and "The Waters of Mars"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or Pokémon; they belong to their respective companies, so there.**

**So without further ado, let the story begin!**

* * *

Prologue

_Many years ago, the peace of the Pokémon world was rocked when two Pokémon, one of them formerly a human, arrived from the future to stop the Temporal Tower from collapsing and thus save their world from eternal darkness. They joined forces with the Pokémon Explorers' Club and formed an Exploration team. Calling themselves Team PokéHeroes, they were able to prevent the disaster and thus save the world. Through a series of events, Team PokéHeroes discovered the whole plan had been devised by the Dark Pokémon, Darkrai. They managed to defeat him and with his last strength, he disappeared from their sight. Peace was restored and Team PokéHeroes became the most famous Pokémon Exploration Team ever known. All was well, until one day…._

The depths of space were quiet and still. The stars were shining brighter than the largest school of Chinchou in the seas. The moon shone its beams down on the planet below, bathing it in a silvery glow.

Then, almost from nowhere, a large pink dragon-like creature appeared in the cosmos. This was Palkia, the Legendary Pokémon of space. With a roar that shook the heavens, he soared through space faster than a Pidgeot. The pearls on his shoulders twinkled in the moonlight as he observed the blackness of space that surrounded the Pokémon world. With a satisfied nod, the mighty Spatial Pokémon prepared to return to his dimension.

Suddenly, a loud whooshing roar reached Palkia's ears. He turned to look and spotted a massive meteor shower approaching the planet below. He did a double-take and looked again. No, those weren't meteors. They looked too shiny, like the coat of a Magnezone. He flew in for a closer look.

At that moment, one of the meteor things spun round and made straight for Palkia! Quickly, the Dragon Pokémon soared over it, but it turned round and followed him. Realizing he couldn't escape, Palkia opened his mouth and fired a Hyper Beam at the meteor.

KABOOOOOMMM! The attack hit dead on target, smoke billowing over it. Palkia growled in victory. But then the meteor flew out of the smoke, seemingly unharmed.

"What the…? How was that possible?"the Spatial Pokémon snarled to himself. "Maybe Spatial Rend will destroy this thing…"

But just as he began to prepare the attack, the meteor opened up and a strange black shadow with thick arms burst out towards Palkia. With a roar of anger, he fired his attack, a wave of spatial energy zooming towards the shadow. But somehow, the shadow absorbed the energy into itself and kept going. Palkia tried to get away, but the shadow was too quick and it grabbed the Dragon in a powerful embrace. Palkia gasped; his mind felt like it was burning from the inside out.

The last thing the Legendary Pokémon saw before the darkness overwhelming his senses was the open doorway of the meteor and some strange black shapes, each with a glowing centre, looking out. And a mysterious voice saying, "This, my people, is only the beginning…"

* * *

Deep in the Time Vortex, a small blue box span and swirled, pausing momentarily to get its bearings before getting caught in the currents of time and space once more.

Inside, the Doctor pranced around the control console, twisting dials and pulling levers. "Come on, come on," he muttered to himself, although mostly to the TARDIS, "if you keep acting up like this, we'll never get to Barcelona. The Annual No-nosed Dog Show is coming on and I'll-"

Suddenly, the TARDIS was smashed sideways as if it was hit by a giant, and the Doctor was flung backwards into the passenger seat. Recovering quickly, he jumped up and switched on the scanner screen. At first, all he saw was the Vortex, its blue currents swirling like the inside of a tornado. Then he spotted a strange shadow zooming closer to the TARDIS.

The Doctor gaped incredulously, running his hand through his hair. "That's impossible!"

BOOOMM! The TARDIS was hit again, but this time, the Time Lord managed to grab on the console for balance and looked on the screen again. This time, he caught a proper glimpse of the shadow as it flew away. It looked like a large bluish dinosaur, with a massive sail of spikes on its back. Its body glowed with blue stripes along its sides and on its chest was a large chest plate, in which a large diamond sparkled.

The creature turned back towards the time vessel and the Doctor noticed something very wrong. There was something on its back, something dark with thick arms and a glowing pink centre. It crawled onto the beast's front, completely covering the chest plate and diamond, and then wrapped its arms around the neck. The creature let out a roar of agony as it smashed into the TARDIS and flew away.

"Oh no, you don't," the Doctor cried as he altered his ship's flight. Within seconds, the TARDIS was following the beast out of the Time Vortex and towards a distant planet.

Soon the beast crashed down in the middle of a forest, still crying out in pain, but not loud enough to drown out the whooshing, grating noise of a blue box appearing nearby. Inside the Doctor could only watch in horror as the cries faded and, moments later, the beast stood to its feet and let out an earth-trembling roar, its eyes glowing red and stripes now a deep purple.

The Doctor's eyes narrowed as he stared at the form on the beast's chest. "I know what you are," he growled. "And I'll stop whatever you're doing before it's too late…"

"It's _already _too late, Time Lord," a sinister voice hissed.

The Doctor whirled around to find a shadow standing inside the TARDIS with him. It was slightly shorter than a man, with wing-like appendages on its back and glowing blue eyes.

"Who or what are you," the Doctor snapped, "and how did you get in my ship?"

"It doesn't matter," the shadow sniggered as it started forming a ball of dark energy in its hands. "You can't stop my masters' plans, and this 'ship' of yours now belongs to them. As for you, you're no longer necessary, so now this world can be your home."

And with that, it launched the energy ball straight at the Doctor. Before he could react, he felt it strike and crashed to the floor with a cry. He felt something strange happen to his body, like it was changing. _Was this it? _He thought,_ Am I about to regenerate? Am I…_

Then, as a villainous laugh filled the TARDIS, everything went black…

* * *

**Wow, first chapter finished. So which Pokémon do you think the Doctor will become? I've already got an idea, but I might change it if I like your ideas. Note: they must be from PMD: Explorers of Time/Darkness/The Sky.**

**See you round. **


	2. Arrival

**Wow, I'm on my next chapter already.**

* * *

Chapter 1: Arrival

The sun was setting over the land, reaching the little beach outside Treasure Town, and once again, the Krabbys were gathered along the rocks, blowing their bubbles into the air. Each frothy sphere caught in the evening sun and sparkled like gemstones. And watching this unusual spectacle were two members of the most well-known Exploration Team in the land, Team PokéHeroes: Rachel, the human turned Raichu, and Ignatius, the Monferno.

Rachel let out a sigh. "Pretty, isn't it?"

"Yes," Ignatius nodded. "Makes me think of the day we first met."

"Who would have guessed that we would become a Team and save the world?" she asked.

"Not me," the Fire Monkey chuckled.

"I'm glad I got a second chance at life," Rachel smiled.

"Mmm," he agreed.

Then suddenly, Rachel turned sharply round, facing the beach.

"What's up?" Ignatius asked concerned.

"Thought I heard something," the Electric Mouse replied. "Sort of a… groan or something. It came from down there," she pointed further along the coast.

"Let's check it out," he cried.

With that, the two Pokémon raced down the beach, splashing through the rising tide, until they reached the spot, where they stopped and gasped in amazement.

There, on the beach, lying supine in the sand, was a Pokémon and one very familiar to the Team. It was barely a foot tall, bright yellow with brown stripes on its back. It had pointed black-tipped ears, a scruffy fringe, red circles on its cheeks, and a tail shaped like a lightning bolt.

"Oh my Arceus," Rachel stammered. "It's… it's a Pikachu!"

* * *

"FOOTPRINT DETECTED! FOOTPRINT DETECTED!" the sentry called out.

"WHOSE FOOTPRINT?" the question came. "WHOSE FOOTPRINT?"

"FOOTPRINT IS MONFERNO!" answered the sentry. "FOOTPRINT IS MONFERNO!"

"Must we go through this every time?" Ignatius sighed in exasperation. "Can't they tell that it's an emergency?"

"Ignatius, please," Rachel sighed as she carried the unconscious Pikachu to the ladder. She'd already had her footprint identified, and she had to wait for the impatient Monferno to have his done. "It's a strict routine; we have to do it. Besides, it's not urgent. I don't think this little guy's seriously hurt."

"TEAM POKÉHEROES IDENTITY CONFIRMED!" the sentry answered. "YOU MAY ENTER!"

"Finally," Ignatius groaned. He bounded over to Rachel and together they entered the Wigglytuff Explorer's Club.

"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE," a loud voice rang out.

"Oh dear," Rachel sighed. "Here comes trouble, aka Loudred."

"OH, IT'S YOU," Loudred screamed, coming out of the canteen. "YOU'RE BACK SOONER THAN WE-"His shouts tailed off when he spotted the Pikachu in Rachel's arms. "WHO'S THIS?"

"We found him on the beach," Ignatius replied, "near where I first met Rachel. He wouldn't wake up, so we decided to bring him back here."

"What's this? Someone's hurt, you say?" a squawking voice rang out.

Moments later, Chatot flew into the room, followed closely by Wigglytuff. Concern crossed their faces when they saw the unconscious yellow Pokémon.

"Is he alright?" Chatot asked.

"We don't know," Rachel answered, placing the Pikachu on the ground. "We did everything we could: shaking him, splashing water on his face, Ignatius even tried using his tail on him. Nothing worked. We brought him here to see if you could help."

"We'll certainly try," Wigglytuff replied, and then called out, "YOOMTAH! Bidoof, call a doctor!"

"Yes, what is it?" a completely new voice responded.

Everyone jumped so high they almost crashed through the ceiling. They turned to see the Pikachu sitting up and looking round curiously. Rachel noticed that his eyes were not large and black like other Pikachu, but small and brown almost like… a human's.

"Right," the Pikachu said. "So… couple of questions. First of all, where am I?"

"Uhh," Rachel stammered. "In the Wigglytuff Explorer's Club."

"Ok. Second, how did I get here?"

"We brought you here," Ignatius replied, "and before your next question, answer me this one: who are you? What's your name?"

"Well," the Pikachu answered, "you must already know since you called me."

"Eh?" Wigglytuff asked. "All I was doing was calling for a doctor."

"Yep, that's me," the Electric Mouse answered. "I'm the Doctor."

"Your name's the Doctor?" Rachel asked. "That's a job, not a name. Anyway, we thought you were dead. You were completely out of it when we found you."

"Well, I'm all right now," the Doctor said. He started patting himself over. "Everything seems to be fine. Arms not broken, I still feel my feet and- What's this?" He turned quickly round. "Is that a tail? I'm not supposed to have a tail."

"Well, of course you're supposed to have a tail," Ignatius cried out. "I've never seen a Pikachu without one."

The Doctor turned back, a stunned look in his eyes. "What?"

"You're a Pikachu," Rachel answered. "You've got everything a Pikachu supposed to have."

"What?" he asked again.

"Take a look," Rachel pointed to one of the pools of water nearby.

The Doctor jumped up, dashed to the pool, looked down… and quickly looked up again. "WHAT?"

* * *

**Good place to finish, don't you think? Thanks again to HG131 for suggesting that the Doctor should be a Pikachu.**

**See you round**


	3. Missions and Meetings

**Here we are again… the next part of my story. **

**So, Chapter 2 begins…. now.**

* * *

Chapter 2: Missions and Meetings

Night had fallen, but in her bed, Rachel couldn't sleep. Her mind was still going over the events from earlier that day. After the Doctor's shock at discovering he's now a Pikachu, Chatot and Wigglytuff asked him some questions, trying to unlock his memories. Unfortunately, he didn't know anything other than his name.

Finally, a frustrated Chatot wanted to throw him out, but Rachel intervened by telling them how alike she and the Doctor were and then asked if he could join her team, and Ignatius seconded the decision. Wigglytuff agreed and said he would announce the news to the rest of the Guild.

So an extra bed was bought into Team PokéHeroes' room, and now the team had settled down to sleep. Or so she thought.

"Doctor?" Rachel hissed to the bed on her left; Ignatius slept in the bed on her right. "Doctor, are you awake?"

"Yeah," came the hushed response.

"Sorry," Rachel whispered. "I didn't mean to disturb you; I just-"

"No, it's alright," the Doctor replied. "I couldn't sleep either."

"How did you know I was awake?" Rachel gasped, sitting up in her bed.

"I heard you sighing," the Doctor said, also sitting up. "I was thinking about what you said earlier, about us being alike. What did you mean?"

"Well," the young Raichu answered, "believe it or not, I'm not really a Pokémon either. I'm actually a human."

"Really?"

"Yep," Rachel nodded. "When you didn't remember anything about yourself, it kind of reminded me of me when I first arrived here."

"How can you be a human and a Pokémon at the same time?" the Doctor asked baffled.

"It's a long story," Rachel sighed. "It's too late to tell you now. How about I tell you tomorrow?"

"Alright," the Doctor yawned. "Good night, Rachel."

"Good night," Rachel replied, then with a sigh, she settled back into her bed and finally fell asleep.

* * *

Many miles away, in the underground tunnels of Crystal Crossing, the Legendary Sprite Azelf woke with a gasp. "What… where…" he breathed worriedly. Then he said more determinedly, "Something's wrong. Terribly wrong. I must call the others, and tell them!"

With that, Azelf closed his eyes and sent a powerful telepathic message across the land: _Something's amiss in the world… Come to Crystal Cave immediately._

The message reached Uxie first, in the summit of Steam Cave. A look of concern crossed his closed eyes. "This sounds serious," he murmured and he took off from the cavern.

Seconds later, Mesprit heard the news. With scarcely a thought, she flew from the underground lake of Quicksand Cave towards Crystal Cave.

Others came just as quick. From the depths of the Mystery Jungle, Mew zoomed out. From the Mystic Forest, Celebi soared. From Star Cave, Jirachi awoke and set off. From Sky's Summit, the Shaymin leader grabbed a Gracidia Flower, changed into Sky Forme and took flight.

Within minutes, they all arrived at Crystal Cave, where a worried Azelf was waiting.

"We came as soon as we heard the message," Mesprit said. "What's the problem?"

"I've had a vision," Azelf replied. "The Blue Box has arrived!"

The tiny Legendaries gasped in amazement.

"The Blue Box?" Celebi cried.

"What does that mean?" Mew wondered.

"It means trouble, doesn't it?" Uxie asked.

"It means that our world is in danger," Azelf answered, "and the owner of the Blue Box is here to help."

"How?" Jirachi cried out.

"You see," the blue Sprite continued, "in my vision, I saw Dialga and Palkia being controlled by creatures that are not Pokémon, but from another world. Their minions were spreading across the land, capturing fully evolved Pokémon and taking over their minds. Then, the Blue Box appeared out of nowhere and he stepped out and stopped them."

"And who is he?" Mesprit asked.

Azelf paused for a moment and then spoke: "Our last hope against the approaching shadow… the last one of his kind in the universe… a man feared by the greatest of alien foes… the man known only as… THE DOCTOR!"

* * *

"WAKE UP, YOU LOT! WAKE UP OR YOU'LL BE SORRY!"

Rachel was awake instantly, and so was Ignatius. But the Doctor just put his paws in his ears, turned over and grumbled, "Keep it down, will you. Some of us are trying to sleep."

"WHAT DID HE SAY?" Loudred boomed. "I OUGHTA-"

"Loudred, no!" Rachel cried out. "Let me handle this. Doctor, it's morning. We have to get up if we're to receive our instructions for the day."

"Oh, right," the Doctor replied, sitting up and stretching. "In that case, let's get going."

Within minutes, the team was at the meeting room, where Wigglytuff and Chatot were giving out the news to the other teams.

"Right," Chatot squawked. "As you can see, we have a new guest in the Guild. A Pikachu who, for some reason, is named the Doctor."

"That's not a name," a voice cried out, "that's a job description!"

"That's what we thought too," Chatot agreed. "However, like Rachel here, he's not a Pokémon, but a human."

"What?" everyone gasped.

"It's true," Rachel confirmed. "He also doesn't remember who he really is. Until we find out, he's a member of our team. So, treat him kindly, OK?"

"Right," Chatot continued. "The duties: on sentry duty today will be Team Fangs."

"Who're they?" the Doctor whispered as the Parrot Pokémon continued giving duties.

"Those guys at the back," Ignatius replied, pointing to a trio of dog-like Pokémon. "They're so called because they know the elemental Bite attacks. Their leader is a Houndoom named Cendo, who knows Fire Fang. Then there's Sparky the Manectric, who uses Thunder Fang. And finally, Snowdrop the Glaceon is skilled at Ice Fang."

"Ok, everyone," Chatot cried out. "Now for the cheers."

"ONE, DON'T SHIRK WORK! TWO, RUN AWAY AND PLAY! THREE, SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

With that, everyone dispersed to their respective duties.

"Come on, Doctor," Rachel said. "Let's go get our mission."

"What mission?" the Doctor asked, puzzled.

"Our job as an Exploration Team," the former human replied, "is to come to the aid of anyone who needs our help. We choose one from the Bulletin Board in the hall."

Soon, Team PokéHeroes were standing in front of the Board, looking over for a job to do.

"This looks interesting," Ignatius said, pointing to a piece of paper that had the word "URGENT!" written on it.

But just as Rachel reached out to grab it, a flash of blue swooped out of nowhere and snatched the paper off the Board.

"Whoops," a shrieking voice cried out. "Too late!"

Wheezing laughs from behind made the Team turn round. There, holding the job between them was a Koffing and a Zubat.

"Oh no," Rachel groaned. "Not you two."

"Yes, us two," Zubat snickered.

"Who are they?" the Doctor asked.

"They're part of Team Skull," Ignatius growled. "They've been picking on us for months now."

"What's going on here?"

The voice came from a large purple and white skunk-like Pokémon, with its eyes half-hidden by its massive tail.

"Nothing's wrong, Skuntank," Koffing smirked. "Zubat's just picked a mission for us."

"That's not true," Ignatius snapped. "That blue freak stole it from under our noses."

"Finders keepers," Zubat chuckled.

"Why, you rotten-"

"Ignatius, please," Rachel shouted, grabbing the angry Monferno's arm. "It doesn't matter; there are other missions."

"Gee, thanks a bunch, PokéZeroes," Skuntank jeered. "Now let's- hello." He spotted the Doctor still by the Board and stamped over. "You must be the Guild's guest. Why are you hanging around with these losers?"

"Because Rachel invited me to," the Pikachu answered politely. "I had nowhere else to go. Anyway, why are you still picking on them? From what I hear, Rachel and Ignatius are one of the highest ranking teams in the Guild." He paused for a moment. "Unless… you're jealous of their ranking, perhaps?"

"We're not jealous," Skuntank bristled. "They're just a bunch of weaklings who-"

"Who have taken on some pretty tough Pokémon over the past few months," Rachel interjected. "Far tougher than you bullies. So if you think you lot scare me with your tough talking, you are DEAD wrong. Now, GET LOST!"

Skuntank was stunned for a second, then he composed himself and snarled, "Boys, we're leaving. What's the mission?"

"Um," Zubat stuttered. "It's from a… Totodile. He needs rescuing from, er… Midnight Forest."

"Right, let's go," Skuntank commanded. And with that, Team Skull left.

"What a bunch of wusses," Ignatius growled. "Thanks, Rachel."

"Not a problem," the Raichu replied. "Did they say Midnight Forest?"

"What's wrong with that?" the Doctor asked.

"It's just… Team Bubblebeam went on a mission to Midnight Forest three days ago, and we never heard from them since."

"Well, I'm sure it's just a coincidence," the Doctor shrugged. Then he held out a small sheet of paper. "I found a mission for us."

"Let's see," Rachel took a look. "Hmm, seems a Toxicroak is causing trouble at Mount Bristle. Let's get our things from Mrs. Kangaskhan and sort this out."

Soon, Team PokéHeroes were at the Kangaskhan Storage Stall in Treasure Town.

"Hello, dearies," the Parent Pokémon called out. "Who's your friend?"

"Hi, Mrs. Kangaskhan," Rachel greeted with a smile. "This is the Doctor. He's staying with us for a while."

"Pleased to meet you," Kangaskhan smiled. "Now then, what can I do for you?"

"We'd like our usual mission stuff, please."

"Certainly." Kangaskhan entered her shop and came out with an assortment of items. "Let's see now… six Reviver Seeds, three Max Elixirs, five Oran Berries, 20 Gravelrocks, 30 Iron Thorns and your items."

"My Pink Bow and Ignatius' Defense Scarf," Rachel explained to the Doctor. "Any rare items for us?"

"Well, sweetie," Kangaskhan replied. "I did find two unusual items last night. Let me get them for you."

She returned moments later carrying what looked like a large brown towel. "Here you go."

Rachel looked it over. "Strange, it's some sort of coat. It's almost Pikachu sized."

"May I?" The Doctor took the coat and put it on. "It fits perfectly."

"Hey, check these out," Ignatius held out another item. "This was hidden under the coat."

"They look like Scopes or Specs," Rachel noted, "only the lenses aren't dark at all."

"Let me see those," the Doctor said. He took them and placed them on his face. "What do you think?"

"They make you look smarter," Rachel said politely.

"Right," the Pikachu cried out, whipping the specs off and putting them in his coat pocket. "I'll take these two."

"Thank you, darlings," Kangaskhan smiled. "Come again."

"Thank you, Mrs. Kangaskhan," Rachel replied. "Alright then. Let's set off for Mt Bristle!"

* * *

**Finished at last! So the Doctor's joined Team PokéHeroes and is about to start his first mission. Thanks to Cylon One who suggested the Doctor's coat and glasses should be included.**

**See you around.**


	4. The Doctor's First Mission

**Next chapter is here! Now before I begin, someone has asked if the Doctor's sonic screwdriver could also appear. It will, just not right now. Please understand that at the moment, the Doctor doesn't know who he is and don't think it'll be in his coat; you'll see why.**

**So… thinking cap on and off I go!**

* * *

Chapter 3: The Doctor's First Mission

It was quite a long walk from Treasure Town to Mt Bristle, but the Team made the journey with a spring in their steps. The Doctor in particular was ambling along nicely, keeping ahead of everyone else. Rachel and Ignatius almost had to run to catch up to him.

"Slow down, would you?" Rachel called out. "We're not in a rush, you know."

"Aren't we?" the Doctor asked. "Sorry, when you said 'We're off' earlier, I was under the impression you wanted to get there quickly. Alright, I'll slow down."

Soon, Rachel, Ignatius and the Doctor were walking side by side.

"So, anyway, Rachel" the Doctor said, "last night, you told me you were actually a human and not a… er, whatchacallem…"

"Pokémon."

"Yes, that," he continued. "So how did that happen?"

"Well, actually, I'm not just a human you see." Rachel sighed. "I'm from the future."

The Doctor froze midstep. "You what?"

"It's true," Ignatius confirmed. "She's from the future."

"But," the Doctor stammered, "how?"

Rachel and Ignatius then went on to tell the story of how they met and all the adventures they had together, before Rachel's partner from the future, Grovyle. They also explained how the Legendary Pokémon of Time, Dialga, became corrupted and how they saved the future.

"But, hang on," the Doctor said when they'd finished. "If you came from the future and changed it, how come you're still here? I mean, your world no longer exists, and thus neither should you. Did you know that would happen?"

"Yes," Rachel replied. "But Grovyle and I were willing to make that sacrifice. We no longer wanted a corrupted Pokémon of Time lording over our lives-"

Suddenly the Doctor stopped again. His mind was filled with strange voices that seemed familiar somehow: _Time Lord…. Time Lord…. Last of the Times Lords…. That's the curse of the Time Lord…. Time Lord…._

"Doctor!"

The Doctor blinked and looked round. "Yes?"

"Are you alright?" Rachel asked.

"You spaced out, dude," Ignatius added.

"Yeah," the Doctor replied. "Come on then. Let's get going!"

* * *

Soon, Team PokéHeroes were standing at the base of Mt Bristle, looking up towards the peak.

"That is pretty high," the Doctor gaped.

"It's not really," Ignatius shrugged. "It's only nine floors high."

"Floors?"

"This mountain," Rachel explained, "and the other areas are known as Mystery Dungeons. Each visit has different floors, hidden items and all sorts of wild Pokémon. Now our mission is on the 6th floor. Once we stop Toxicroak, we'll contact Sheriff Magnezone who'll come and take him to prison."

"Right," the Doctor nodded. "Shall we?"

The others agreed and entered the Dungeon.

The first and second floors were quite uneventful; all the Team found was some Pecha Berries and about 200 Poké, the currency of this world. But on the third floor, they ran into a flock of Doduo, who weren't very pleased to be disturbed.

"ATTACK!" the leader squawked and the two-headed birds charged.

"Get ready, everyone," Rachel called out. She and Ignatius immediately went into battle poses, but the Doctor just stood in confusion. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"The Doduo are attacking," Ignatius replied. "We have to fight back."

"I, I can't," the Doctor stammered.

"What?" the Fire Pokémon cried.

"I can't fight them. I don't want to hurt them."

"Listen, little yellow coward," Ignatius growled, "if we don't fight them, they'll take us out and we fail this mission."

"But I don't know how to fight them. It's like my mind is against it or something."

"It's alright, Doctor," Rachel said calmly. "We won't hurt them too badly. Anyway, I know how you feel. I used to be a Pikachu too, so I'll show you how to battle, OK?"

The Doctor thought for a moment, then smiled and nodded.

"Good," the former human said. "Now, let's do this!" And the Team charged forward.

Immediately the Doduo in front lashed both its heads forwards, crying, "FURY ATTACK!"

"Dodge it now!" Rachel called out and she, Ignatius and the Doctor jumped backwards, narrowly avoiding the attack. "Okay, Ignatius, do your stuff."

"FLAME WHEEL!" The Fire Monkey's body was engulfed in flames and he charged forward, crashing into the Doduo with such force that he knocked it out.

"Good work," Rachel cheered. "Ok Doctor, we'll let the next Doduo hit us."

"Sorry?" the Pikachu asked.

"Trust me, you'll like this."

"PECK!" two of the Doduo cried as they launched a beck at the two Mouse Pokémon. Rachel was knocked backwards and so was the Doctor. But then, the Doctor's attacker let out a squawk of pain, its body sparkling with electricity.

"What happened there?" he asked amazed.

"The Doduo's Paralyzed," Rachel explained. "Our kind has the Ability, Static, which stuns any Pokémon who hit us with physical attacks."

"That's great and all," Ignatius shouted as he knocked out another Doduo with a Mach Punch, "but there's still a few others attacking us. We need to take them out, fast!"

"Right, Rachel nodded. "Now Doctor, Doduo are Flying Pokémon, so our Electric attacks can cause critical damage to them. When I give the word, press your paws to your cheeks and command a Thundershock. I'll combine it with a Thunderbolt and we'll take them out."

"Right," the Doctor said, preparing himself.

"DRILL PECK!" the lead Doduo cried. At once the beaks on the remaining two-headed birds began to spin like a drill, and they charged forward.

"Now, Doctor!" Rachel commanded.

"THUNDERSHOCK!" The Doctor's cheeks sparked and he launched a bolt of lightning at the charging Doduo.

"THUNDERBOLT!" Rachel launched a more powerful bolt from her body, and the attacks struck the birds, lighting up their bodies like Christmas lights. Then the Doduo crashed to the ground, unconscious. All except one, the leader, who quickly turned tail and ran for it.

"Hey, where's he going?" the Doctor asked.

"It's his own ability, Run Away," Ignatius replied as he tossed Rachel an Oran Berry. "It's what certain Pokémon do when they realize they're fighting a losing battle."

"Well done, Team." Rachel grinned eating the Berry. "And Doctor, nice work. You did well out there."

"Thanks, Rachel," the Doctor said happily. "Now then, let's head to the 6th floor, find that Toxicroak, show him who's boss, back in time for tea. Come on."

Floors 4 and 5 were almost as uneventful as the first two; the Team found more Oran Berries, 100 Poké, some unusual seeds and a large blue chest which the Doctor put in the pocket of his coat because the Toolbox was full. They were also attacked by a Nidorina, which allowed Rachel the chance to teach the Doctor how to use Tail Whip, Thunder Wave and Quick Attack. Soon Team PokéHeroes reached the 6th floor.

"Alright, Toxicroak," Rachel shouted. "We know you're here. Come out and surrender!"

"Surrender? Oh, I don't think so," a deep croaking voice responded. "I like this place too much to leave now, so I'm afraid I can't agree to that request."

"Then we'll just have to stop you," Ignatius growled, raising his fists.

Suddenly out of the shadows came a large blue frog-like Pokémon with a big red throat and a sharp claw on the end of each fist. A sneer crossed his face as he said, "Bring it on."

"Alright, Team, LET'S GO!" Rachel cried and the battle began.

"POISON STING!" Toxicroak cried, as launched a volley of glowing barbs from his mouth.

"Oh no, you don't," Ignatius snarled. "FLAMETHROWER!" A stream of fire burst from his mouth, incinerating the barbs into ash.

"My turn," Rachel called. "QUICK ATTACK!" She charged forward, dodging to and fro, before slamming into the Poison Pokémon, but he simply shook it off like it was nothing.

"SWAGGER!" Toxicroak let out a mighty yell, sending the Team flying backwards. Rachel and the Doctor got up and shook their heads. Ignatius meanwhile stood up with a dazed look on his face.

"Come on, guys," Rachel called out. "Let's keep going."

"Right," Ignatius slurred. "MACH PUNCH!" His fist started glowing white, and thrust it forward – straight into the wall behind them.

"Oh no," Rachel gasped. "He's Confused!"

Toxicroak chuckled nastily. "That takes care of your friend, now for you. POISON JAB!" The claw on his right hand turned a sickly purple colour and he thrust it right into the Doctor's stomach. The Doctor gasped and fell onto his hands and knees.

"Doctor!" Rachel cried out in alarm.

"What's… happening… to me?" he groaned through gritted teeth. "I feel so weak."

"You've been Poisoned," Rachel said as she pulled out the Toolbox. "Hold on, we'll use the Pecha Berries we found- OOOF!" She was knocked over by a punch from Ignatius and the Berries and seeds scattered across the ground. "Oh no!"

"Ha!" Toxicroak laughed. "Now let's see what we've got here." He picked up a seed by his feet and swallowed it. "Right, now where was-" Suddenly he fell flat on his face and started snoring.

"What the…?" The Doctor stared in amazement.

"He ate a Sleep Seed, the fool." Now it was Rachel's turn to laugh. "He'll be out for a while. Here, eat this." She held out a pink Berry which the Doctor took and ate.

Immediately, the sick feeling disappeared. "Whoa, I feel great."

"So do I," Ignatius suddenly cried, his face looking normal. "So as I was saying, FLAME WHEEL!" And he charged forward, his body ablaze, smashing into the unconscious Poison Pokémon.

"THUNDER!" Rachel cried, as she unleashed a massive bolt of electricity. The Doctor helped with a Thundershock, and quickly Toxicroak collapsed to the ground, knocked out.

"Yes!" Ignatius cheered. "We did it!"

"That was just…" The Doctor struggled to find the right words. "Incredible!"

"Yes, it certainly was, wasn't it?" Rachel nodded. "Now we'll just call in Sheriff Magnezone to take him to prison, and like you said, Doctor, we'll be home in time for tea."

But as they left to contact the Sheriff, a large blue dragon with red wings and a black blob on its chest swooped out of the sky and snatched the unconscious Toxicroak away. "You have been verified for our armies," it growled. "You will join us in our grand invasion…"

* * *

In a forest many miles from Mt Bristle, two shadowy figures were standing around a large blue box. The smallest of the figures was struggling with the door, turning the key, pulling the knob and pushing against the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Why isn't it working?" the largest figure bellowed angrily.

"I don't know, my lord," the smaller figure stammered. "This is definitely the key to this vessel, but I just can't get inside."

"Hmmm," the large shadow thought aloud. "Maybe its pilot would have better luck. Tell me, Darkrai, what did you do with the one called the Doctor?"

"Well, my lord," Darkai replied, "I used my most powerful spell on him, the one that turned him into a Pokémon and removed his memories. Then after I teleported him away, I searched through the pockets of his clothes- you wouldn't believe how deep they were- found the key, tossed out the useless junk and came back here, and here we are."

"YOU FOOL!" the large figure screamed. "My orders were to stun the Doctor and make him fly the TARDIS for us, not turn him into one of the inhabitants!"

"I'm sorry, General Belagar," Darkrai whimpered. "I won't let it happen again."

"Well, then," the general sneered. "Let's return to base. We'll send our scouts around, looking for him, as well as finding more hosts for us."

As they turned to leave, a fluttering noise reached their ears. "What's Pokémon is that?" Belagar commanded.

Darkrai turned and saw a tiny black-and-white bird perched in a nearby tree. "A Starly, my lord. Form 1 Pokémon."

"Incompatible for our needs then," Belagar sniffed. "Let's go." And off they went.

Moments later, the Starly changed its shape, becoming a small cat-like Pokémon with a long tail. Mew then closed his eyes and sent a telepathic message out to the other Legendaries: _I found the Blue Box… come quickly…_

In a matter of minutes, the others arrived and stared at the strange box.

"So, you were right after all," Jirachi said.

"My visions are never wrong," Azelf retorted. "Although, I must admit mine is starting to steer towards that direction."

"So what is this thing exactly?" Mesprit breathed.

"Let me take a look," Mew said. And with that, he held out a tiny paw and touched the side of the box. Suddenly, he let out a gasp of pain.

"Mew, what's wrong?" Celebi cried.

Mew pulled his paw away and turned round, an astonished look on his face. "The things I've seen… it's impossible…"

"Tell us what you saw, Mew," Shaymin said.

Mew cleared his throat and then spoke. "This thing is called a TARDIS."

"A what?" Uxie asked.

"A TARDIS," Mew repeated. "It stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space. Basically, the Blue Box can travel across time and space…"

"Just like Dialga and Palkia," Mesprit realized.

"Indeed," Mew said. "Its pilot, the Doctor, is a Time Lord, the last one in the universe. His home world was destroyed in a terrible war and now he wanders the many galaxies. He has seen the past, the present and the future of the many worlds and has vanquished many alien foes. The Doctor has become the stuff of legends and has been given many titles: the Lonely God, the Destroyer of Worlds and the Oncoming Storm. But now, he is trapped somewhere on this world while others plot to use this ship."

"What can we do?" Celebi wailed. "We don't know where he is, or what he looks like."

"There is a chance," Mew called out. "You see, I've also seen that the Doctor rarely travels alone."

"What do you mean?" Jirachi asked.

"During many of his adventures," Mew explained, "the Doctor has paid many a visit to a distant world called Earth. There, he has met many companions who have helped him in his battles. If we can find some of those companions and bring them to our world, they can help us in our quest to find the Doctor and stop the darkness."

"Great," Uxie cried out. "Let's do it."

"Hold on," Mew called. "Many of these companions are a long way off, or have since passed away. However, many months ago, Earth and many other planets were taken away from their respective systems by a force thought to be dead long ago. But a small group of former companions fought back and helped the Doctor restore the planets to their rightful places. Those companions are the ones we must find."

"Then we shall find them," Azelf proclaimed. "Tell us where they are."

"Of the companions who helped the Doctor," Mew continued, "one is stranded in an alternate reality and one was forced to forget to save her life. Four others are spread out in a small part of Earth, called England."

"Uxie, Mesprit and I will go find them," Azelf promised. "Celebi, prepare the time portal."

The Grass Legendary nodded and closed her eyes. Seconds later, a small blue hole started to form in the sky above the TARDIS.

"Now, Mew," Azelf said. "Tell me where exactly in England are the ones we're looking for."

Mew thought hard before responding. "Two of them are together, currently in a city called London. Another is a small area called Ealing at no. 13 Bannerman Road. The last one is in an underground lair in a city called Cardiff."

"The portal's ready," Celebi called out from next to the now large hole.

"Right," Azelf cried. "Uxie, Mesprit, let's go."

"Good luck, guys!" Shaymin and Jirachi called out.

With a wave, the Legendary Sprites flew into the hole and off to a new world…

* * *

**Phew, finished at last.**

**See you around.**


	5. The Children of Time

**So Chapter 4 and now the companions are about to join the story.**

**Also for reference, time-placement for **_**Torchwood **_**is before the "Children of Earth" series.**

**And on that note, let's begin!**

* * *

Chapter 4: The Children of Time

_London, England, Earth, the Solar System 2009_

BONG… BONG… BONG… The chimes of Big Ben faded into the darkness. It was eight o'clock and the people of London were returning home from work, some walking, some taking taxis and some riding on buses. None of them were that, just over the clock tower, a portal was opening and three figures were zooming out into the night.

"Here we are," Azelf murmured. "Now we must find these companions."

"They're spread across the land," Mesprit reminded them. "Maybe we should split up and find one each."

"I know what to do," Uxie announced. "We are the Beings of Knowledge, Emotions and Willpower. We will find them by sensing which of them has the strongest of our abilities."

So the Sprites closed their eyes, raised their arms and tuned their Psychic powers outwards. After five minutes, they stopped.

"I've found mine," Uxie panted. "The most knowledgeable of the companions is in Cardiff."

"The one with the strongest emotions," Mesprit breathed, "lives at Ealing."

"Which means," Azelf finished, "that the ones with the greatest will are here in London."

"Right then," Uxie proclaimed. "Let's go!"

And the three Legendaries flew off in separate directions towards their respective targets…

* * *

_The Powell Estate, London 8:03 pm_

The flat was silent and dark, the glow of candles giving a gentle feeling of calm. Mickey Smith set some wine glasses on the table and straightened the plates. Everything had to be perfect for when Martha arrived. He checked the palm-held scanner for any alien signs; nothing showed, which was quite a relief. In the years that he'd been away, all types of strange activity had happened: there was the time the Royal Hope Hospital disappeared and reappeared some hours later; then there were some strange occurrences of small fatty creatures popping out of people's backs, and the time the Earth almost suffocated under a cloud of yellowy gas.

But all those threats had been nothing compared to the day the Earth was taken from its system and invaded by Daleks. Mickey and his ex-girlfriend, Rose, joined forces with the Doctor and some former companions to stop the Daleks and return Earth. Rose was returned to her own reality, but Mickey chose to stay, where he met Martha Jones, who was working for UNIT at the time, and convinced her to go freelance with him. And the adventures they went on together…

The doorbell rang at that moment, breaking his thoughts. Mickey quickly composed himself, feeling for the ring box in his pocket, went to the door and opened it.

"Hello, Mickey." It was Martha Jones; lovely, brilliant Martha Jones, the student-doctor-turned-companion-turned-UNIT-operative-turned-freelance-agent.

"Hey, baby," Mickey smiled, grabbing her in a hug. "How are you doing?"

"Great, thanks," Martha replied.

"Come on in."

Martha entered the lounge and looked around. "So, love what you've done to the place. What's up?"

"Nothing much," Mickey said hesitantly. _Mustn't spoil the moment, _he thought as his hand closed around the then it was spoiled anyway when Martha said, "Is that supposed to do that?"

"Do what?" Mickey looked up and saw that Martha was holding the scanner up and it was bleeping. "Wait, let's see that. It says there's something alien here in this room."

"What?" Martha gasped.

_Hello, Mickey Smith and Martha Jones, _a voice whispered in their heads.

"What the…?" Mickey gasped, looking around. "Who said that?"

"I think we should ask that thing over there," said Martha, pointing.

Mickey spun round as a figure appeared before them. It was a small white being with a blue head shaped like a half-star and two thin tails ending with leaf-like flanges.

_Yes, it is me, _the figure nodded. _My name is Azelf and I need your help, Mickey and Martha._

"How did you know our names?" Mickey asked.

_I know everything about you both, _Azelf replied in their minds. _I know that you, Mickey, are a hero in Pete's world… how you faced the Cybermen and saved your world. And Martha, you are an incredible person… heroine of the Year That Never Was… Also you two have the strongest willpower of any companion._

"Well, why do you need our help?" Martha asked.

_Because you know the Doctor._

The couple gasped. "The Doctor?"

_Yes,_ Azelf nodded. _He's trapped in our world and we don't know where he is. We need you to come to our world and find him._

"Who are we?" Mickey asked.

_A bunch of Legendary Pokémon who have watched over our world from our hidden positions. But a dark force is threatening our very existence. The Doctor was our one chance of salvation, but he has somehow assumed the form of a Pokémon, but we don't know which one. So we need you, the Children of Time, to find him._

"Alright," Martha said determinedly. "We'll do it, won't we, Mickey?"

Mickey hesitated for a minute, before sighing, "Ok, count me in."

_Alright then. _Azelf twirled around and held out its tails. _But before you can enter our world, you too must become Pokémon. Grab my tail and I'll help change you._

Tentatively, Mickey and Martha each held out a hand and placed on Azelf's tail. As they did, they gasped as a sudden pain shot through their bodies. _Don't worry, it'll be over soon,_ was the last thing they heard…

* * *

_13 Bannerman Road, Ealing 8:07 pm_

Luke Smith was in his room, doing his homework, when he heard his mother calling him from the attic. He jumped up and ran upstairs to find his mom, Sarah Jane, and K-9 waiting for him. He also saw that Mr. Smith, their super-smart computer, was active. "What's the problem?"

"Mr. Smith picked up some strange activity in London," Sarah Jane explained.

"**THREE LIFEFORMS WERE DETECTED APPEARING FROM NOWHERE AND GOING IN SEPARATE DIRECTIONS," **K-9 added.

"Sensors are showing that one of those lifeforms is heading for Ealing at speed," Mr. Smith confirmed, showing a flashing light zooming across a map of the area.

"What is it?" Luke asked.

"We're not sure," Sarah replied, "but I don't think it's dangerous, right, K-9?"

"**INSUFFICENT DATA, MISTRESS,"** the robotic dog said.

"Lifeform has arrived," Mr. Smith spoke up, showing that the light was now on top of their house. "In fact," he added with slight concern, "I don't mean to alarm you, but it's now appeared right behind you."

Sarah and Luke turned around in alarm. There, floating in the air above K-9 was a small white figure with pink flaps on the sides of its head, and two long flap-ended tails. It placed a small hand on K-9's head and suddenly the metallic mutt's eyes started glowing blue.

"**GREETINGS, SARAH JANE AND LUKE SMITH,"** K-9 spoke in a trance-like voice. **"MY NAME IS MESPRIT AND I NEED YOUR HELP."**

Luke stared in amazement. "That thing's talking to us through K-9!"

"**AFFIRMATIVE." **Mesprit nodded as K-9 spoke. **"YOU ARE ONE OF THE CHILDREN OF TIME, SARAH JANE. YOU HAVE SEEN THINGS NO OTHER HUMAN HAS EVER KNOWN, DEFEATED THE DALEKS AND FACED THE SINISTER TRICKMASTER, AND YOUR EMOTIONS ARE APPARENT IN THE LOVE YOU SHARE WITH YOUR SON. BUT NOW THE DOCTOR IS IN TROUBLE."**

"The Doctor?" Sarah gasped. "Is he all right?"

"**WE DO NOT KNOW,"** Mesprit replied through K-9. **"ALL WE KNOW IS THAT HE'S STRANDED IN OUR WORLD AS A POKÉMON, AND IF WE DON'T FIND HIM SOON, OUR WORLD IS DOOMED. SO WE NEED YOUR HELP TO FIND HIM. DO YOU ACCEPT?"**

Sarah nodded. "I do accept."

"Wait," Luke cried. "Let me come too; the Doctor saved me from the Trickmaster, so I owe him one."

"**VERY WELL,"** K-9 said asMesprit held out its tails. "**WHEN YOU TOUCH THE TAILS, YOU WILL BE TURNED INTO POKÉMON LIKE US. HAVE NO FEAR, YOU'LL BE UNHARMED."**

Sarah and Luke both grabbed the tails, and cried out in alarm at the strange feelings in their bodies. Luke saw his mom fall to her knees, then he was falling too, and then he knew nothing more…

* * *

_The Torchwood Hub, Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff 8:15 pm_

It was an unusually quiet night for Cardiff. There were no disturbances in the Rift; no signs of alien technology in the surrounding areas; even the Weevils were behaving themselves. With nothing to do, Captain Jack had sent Gwen and Ianto home early. Now he was alone in the Hub, quiet but for the sounds of the monitors, the splashing of the fountain in the centre and the occasional screech of the pterodactyl in the rafters.

Jack stood up from his desk and went around his office for a while. He felt a bit lonely; he knew that Gwen would be enjoying the company of her husband, Rhys, and Ianto, well, who knows what he does at home. Jack sighed as he put his hands in the pockets of his greatcoat… and felt something inside the left one. He grabbed it and pulled it out.

Oh yes, he remembered this. It was a small wallet which had a blank piece of paper inside. Psychic paper, he recalled. When shown to someone, it would look like whatever Jack wanted it to show; an ID, a business card, driver's licence, whatever. It was a reminder of his days with the Time Agency, until they stole his memories. Then he used it for when he became a conman, until the first time he went to World War II during the Blitz, when he met a girl hanging from a barrage balloon, when he met the Doctor.

As the memories rushed through his head, Jack looked down at the paper again and was surprised to see a message written on it in neat handwriting: _Hello Captain Jack Harkness_

"Hello?" he cried. "How did you…?"

The words on the paper faded and a new message appeared: _Look up_

Jack did so and found himself staring at the closed eyes of a small white figure with a yellow head and hat-like appendage, and two long tails, ending in leafy flaps.

He gasped. "What the hell are you? How did you get in here?"

_Do not be frightened, Captain. I'm not a threat. My name is Uxie._

"Ok," the captain said more calmly. "If you're not a threat, why are you here?"

Uxie's head bowed slightly as the words appeared: _Captain Jack Harkness, leader of Torchwood Three, your knowledge of aliens has grown far beyond any human could imagine. Your team has changed many times over the years, yet you still remain, unable to age or die. That's why we need you to find the Doctor_

Jack gasped again. "The Doctor? Is something wrong with him?"

_Sort of. He's trapped in our world in a Pokémon's body and we don't know where he is now. You must come to me to our land, become a Pokémon too, and rescue him before the darkness falls._

Jack thought for a moment then said, "All right, little guy, I'll help you."

_Good. _Uxie's tails floated up. Take hold and you will become like us. It'll hurt a bit, but you'll be fine.

Jack hesitated a bit then said, "Ah, what the hell, it can't be worse than what I've been through already," and he grabbed the tails, and instantly felt an agonizing pain shoot through him. "Ok, this is worse," he gasped as he blacked out…

* * *

_Big Ben, London 8:30_

As the clock chimed the half-hour, Uxie met up with Azelf and Mesprit by the portal, each carrying their respective transformed companions.

"What took you so long?" Azelf complained. "We've been waiting nearly twenty minutes now."

"Mew didn't say how far from London Cardiff was," Uxie panted.

"Well," Mesprit sighed, "we've got what we came here for. Let's go home."

And off they flew, back into the portal which closed behind them….

* * *

**And there you have it. Now it's my turn to ask for your help. Which Pokémon should our companions be? I have an idea for Jack, Sarah and Luke, but not for Martha and Mickey.**

**See you around**


	6. Walk Like a Pokemon

**So Chapter 5 and now the companions will face the challenges of Pokémon-dom. Sorry this took so long; I was busy with my Spyro fanfic I didn't find the time to work on this.**

**So now, on with the show!**

* * *

Chapter 5: Walk Like A Pokémon

Another beautiful day dawned on the Pokémon world and once again Team PokéHeroes were awakened by Loudred. At the greetings, the teams received their tasks; this day, Team Blizzard, a team consisting of a Froslass, a Sealeo and a Piloswine, were chosen for sentry duty, leaving Team Fangs free for missions. They immediately chose a mission to find a lost Teddiursa in Midnight Forest. Meanwhile, Rachel, Ignatius and the Doctor glanced down the list for their mission.

"Do you see or smell those troublemakers yet?" Rachel asked cautiously.

"No," the Doctor said, shaking his head.

"Hey, Bidoof," Ignatius called to the small brown rodent nearby, "have Team Skull been here recently."

"Oh, good heavens, no," Bidoof replied. "In fact, they haven't been back last night, nope, nope. Perhaps they've run into trouble or something."

"How odd," Rachel murmured. "This has been going a lot recently. Any team that's gone to Midnight Forest hasn't returned."

"Weird," the Doctor agreed. "And now Team Fang are heading there now."

"Well," Ignatius said as he pulled a paper off the board. "Here's a mission for us. It seems a Staravia has been hurt in the Northern Desert, and she needs help."

"Right, we'll do it," Rachel nodded. "But first, I'd like to see what's in that chest we found."

"How do we do that?" the Doctor asked.

"By going to Xatu's Appraisal, of course," Ignatius replied indignantly. "So let's go."

Soon, Team PokéHeroes were standing outside Xatu's stall and meeting the owner.

"Welcome to Xatu's Appraisal," the large green Pokémon squawked. "Do you have a chest that needs opening?"

"We sure do," Rachel said. "Doctor, get it out of your coat."

"All right," the Doctor said, reaching into his pockets. A frown crossed his face. "That's odd," he murmured. "I'm sure it's in here somewhere…"

"What are you talking about?" Ignatius scowled. "It's in your pocket. Just grab it and take it out. Here, let me see." He reached his hand into the nearest pocket and felt around. "Good grief, it's deeper than it looks – Aha!" And with some difficulty, he pulled out the chest. "Here you go, Xatu."

"And here's 150 Poké," Rachel added, placing the money on the counter.

"One moment, please." Xatu's eyes began to glow blue, and the chest popped open and a small CD-like object floated out. "The chest contains one TM Iron Tail."

"Iron Tail!" Rachel cried. "You should take it, Doctor. The Northern Desert has some Rock Pokémon and Steel attacks like Iron Tail are strong against them." As she gave it to the Doctor, she explained how to use it. The Doctor held it in his paws, closed his eyes and focused, and the disc glowed for a moment.

"There we go," the Doctor said, opening his eyes. "I had to forget Tail Whip to get this, which is quite all right. I didn't see the point of it. Thanks for that, Xatu. Now shall we get going?"

Rachel and Ignatius nodded.

"Right then, off to the Northern Desert. _Allons-y_!"

"Never heard that before," Rachel noted.

"Neither have I, but I should use it more often," the Doctor admitted. But as they set off, he thought to himself, _where _have _I heard it before?_

* * *

As Martha began to stir, she was immediately aware that something about her was different. Slowly her eyes flicked open and she rolled onto her back and took in her surroundings. She was in a forest, but like any forest she's ever been in England. There was fruit that she'd never seen before, the flowers were unusually coloured and even the birdsong was different. Then she spotted something nearby, a small reddish dog-like creature with black stripes and a white quaff and tail lying unconscious.

"Hey, are you alright?" she called out as she stood unsteadily to her feet. She tried to step forward, but stumbled back and tripped over something behind her. She looked down and saw a strange dark-green thing on the ground. "What is that?" she murmured as she picked it up – and almost fell over again. That's when she realized the thing was somehow attached to her bum. "Oh… my… God… is that a tail? Is that… _my _tail?"

She reached out her hand to touch the tail thing and then she saw her hands were green and had only three fingers. She saw a puddle nearby and scrambled forwards to look at her face. She saw a strange green lizard face with yellow eyes and a red chin looking up at her… and screamed.

"What? What's going on?" A familiar voice cried out suddenly.

"Mickey?" she gasped, still paralyzed with shock. "Is that you?"

"Yeah," she heard him reply. "It's me. Where are you?"

"What do you mean, where am I? I'm over here."

"All I can see is this sort of lizard thing," Mickey called out. "Hang on; I'm coming to – OOF!"

"Are you alright?" Martha cried.

"I'm fine, I just tried to stand up and I fell over."

Now Martha turned around… to see the stripy dog lying flat on its face. She stared in slight horror. "Mickey, you're that… dog thing?"

"What?" the dog gasped in Mickey's voice. "You're the lizard thing?"

The two just stared for a moment before crying out, "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?"

"Ah, you're both awake," a small voice rang out.

Martha and Mickey looked up and saw Azelf floating above their heads. Mickey jumped to his feet, all four of them, looking very cross. "You!" he almost barked. "What the hell have you done to us?"

"Don't be upset," the Sprite said calmly. "I told you, you had to become Pokémon before you could come to our world. I simply changed you into the Pokémon that suited your personality best."

"What do you mean?" Martha asked puzzled.

"Let me explain," Azelf replied. "Your form, Martha Jones, is a Treecko, a Pokémon that never panics in any situation. Likewise, you were never afraid to face up to danger; you stared a Dalek in the eyestalk, faced up to the Family of Blood and risked your own life to save your friends during the Year That Never Was. And you, Mickey Smith, have become a Growlithe, known as the Puppy Pokémon. When your friend Rose became the Doctor's companion, you felt left out, the proverbial 'tin dog' as you referred to it. But just as Growlithe evolves into the more powerful Arcanine, so have you evolved into a powerful ally against your enemies."

"I understand now," Martha breathed.

"Yeah," Mickey agreed. "So we're in your world now. What is this place?"

"This is Apple Woods," Azelf said. "It's a short distance away from Treasure Town. Your job is to go there, find the Doctor and try to jog his memory again." Then he waved a hand and some clothing appeared before them. "These are the clothes you were wearing when I found you. Put them on."

Martha found her red leather jacket and pulled it over her shoulders, while Mickey, who was still not used to his doggy legs, struggled into his black top. "Is this so the Doctor might be able to recognize us?" Martha asked.

"Well, yes," Azelf nodded. "Plus you don't have a Toolbox for carrying Items so I thought you might need extra pockets."

"Either way, thanks," she said. "Come on then, Mickey. Let's go find the Doctor!"

* * *

Some distance away, in another part of Apple Woods, Sarah Jane was also about to discover something different about her.

"Hey! Hey, wake up," a familiar voice rang in her ears.

With a groan, she opened her eyes, lifted her head and looked round. She found herself staring into the face of a small brown fox-like animal, with black eyes, pointed ears and a gray ruff round its neck. "Where am I?" she murmured. "Who are you?"

"Mom?" the fox gasped. "It's me, Luke!"

"Luke," Sarah asked as she got to her feet – and promptly fell over again. "What's happened to me? I can't stand up."

"You're some sort of quadruped animal," Luke explained. "You have to walk on your hands and feet, like me."

Sarah held out her arms to see… and gasped. Instead of hands, she was looking at two paws covered in light purple fur. She looked over herself. The fur covered the rest of her body, and she saw a long tail ending in a V-shape. Instinctively, she reached for her handbag to grab a mirror to see her face, but it wasn't there. So she looked in a nearby puddle… to see a purple-furred face with large ears and a red jewel in the centre of her forehead staring back. "What… am I?"

"You're a Pokémon called an Espeon," another voice called out.

Sarah looked up to see Mesprit floating over them. "A what?"

"An Espeon," Mesprit repeated. "I chose this form because of your incredible foresight to know when trouble is around. And Luke is an Eevee, which is like a juvenile form of Espeon. However, he is a different colour to other Eevee, which makes him distinguishable in a crowd."

"So this is your world?" Luke realized. "So what do we do here?"

"Before we came for you," Mesprit replied, "we overheard that the dark force has scattered many of the Doctor's items around our world. My friends have located some of them, but two haven't been found yet. You must find them and use them to help the Doctor remember who he is."

"Alright," Sarah said. "We'll do it."

"And to help you out, I've brought your handbag with some of your items inside," Mesprit added, pointing to a small bag on a tree stump. "You can also use it to store any other items you find in your travels. And Luke, here's something you may find useful; a Power Scarf. Good luck, you two."

Sarah looked in her bag and saw that her sonic lipstick was still inside amongst her other items. "Perfect," she stated as she helped her son with his scarf. "Come on, Luke. We have a lot to do."

* * *

Several more miles away, by the shore of a lake, Captain Jack slowly stirred and flicked his eyes open. He rolled onto his back and rubbed his head… and immediately felt something wrong. "Bloody hell," he groaned. "What's this bump on my head?"

He lowered his hands and suddenly noticed that they weren't hands at all, they were paws, covered in orange fur and there were bluish fins on his elbows. He dashed over to the lake and looked down to see himself more clearly. He found himself staring at an orange otter-like mammal with a yellow collar round his neck, a creamy belly and a tail split in two. He also saw that the bump on his head was in fact a fin.

"Hello again, Captain," a voice rang out.

Jack turned to see that Uxie was floating behind him. "What the hell have you done to me?" he growled.

"Calm down," Uxie replied. "You have become a Pokémon to fit in our world. You are in fact a Buizel, a slick and handsome Water Type Pokémon."

"Alright," Jack said, more calmly. "So where am I?"

"On the shore of Lake Afar," Uxie answered. "You are given the task of investigating the mysterious disappearances in the nearby Midnight Forest." Then he pointed to a familiar piece of blue clothing nearby. "Your greatcoat is over there so you can stand out more. Be careful out there, Captain."

"Thanks, little guy," Jack smiled as he put on his coat. "See you round." And he set off east towards the forest nearby.

* * *

At that very moment, Team Fangs were also arriving at Midnight Forest. The three hounds set off and were almost immediately attacked by the inhabitant Pokémon. The Bug Types were taken out by Cendo's Fire; the Flying types were defeated by Sparky's Thunderbolt; and Snowdrop's Ice attacks easily wiped out the Grass Types.

As they continued, Cendo smiled at his friends. He remembered the days when he was a young Houndour, watching the Exploration teams coming home from a mission, happy at the smiles from their grateful clients. It made him want to be a part of that excitement. At first, the idea seemed impossible, until the day he met an orphaned Electrike named Sparky alone in the woods. Cendo's family took the youngster in and cared for him. In time, Cendo and Sparky became fast friends, and when they grew up, they joined the Exploration Guild and called themselves Team Fangs for their vicious Bite attacks.

Then during a mission, they got into a fight with a tough young Eevee named Snowdrop who proved a very formidable opponent. In fact, after they finally defeated her, they invited her to join the team. She agreed and with her help, they completed the mission quickly. When their graduation came, they managed to defeat the Guild members easily and were thus granted the chance to evolve into the next stages. Snowdrop carried a piece of Ice Rock on her, so she became a Glaceon. Soon they discovered an incredible coincidence between them: they noticed they all knew attacks involving their teeth. Cendo learned Fire Fang; Sparky learned Thunder Fang and Snowdrop learned Ice Fang; all this gave a new meaning to the name Team Fangs.

Now, they were on a new mission. _Searching for a Teddiursa lost in the woods; how hard can it be?_

Soon they reached their destination, and Cendo sniffed on the ground for a scent. "There," he barked, pointing at a passage to the left. "Our target's over that way."

"Then let's get going," Snowdrop said.

"I don't know, guys," Sparky said slightly concerned. "It all seems too easy. I mean, those Pokémon who attacked us only put up a minor struggle."

Cendo chuckled at his friend. "Cautious as ever, huh, Sparky? Well, if someone's hurting that Teddiursa, we'll see how easy it will really be."

They entered the passage and emerged into a clearing where they spotted the Teddiursa. It was facing away from them, looking into the trees and bushes and sounded like it was talking to someone. "… This'll be quick and simple, ok?"

"Hey, kid," Cendo called out. "We got your message and we're here to help you."

The Teddiursa turned around slowly and Cendo could instantly see that something was wrong. Its eyes were glassy and dull, and its face was expressionless. "I'm afraid it's not me who needs help; it's my masters." Its voice was flat and lifeless. "You worth has been proved and you are suitable for them, now the final phase will begin…"

"What final phase?" Snowdrop shouted.

Suddenly, the bushes parted and three strange figures emerged behind the Teddiursa. They were not like any Pokémon Cendo had ever seen; they were black and round, they each had a glowing centre and three long tentacles, two like legs and one raised and pointed like a long neck.

"I knew it," Sparky cried out. "It's a trap! We've gotta get out of here!"

"Are you kidding?" Snowdrop yelled. "These guys look like pushovers, we can take them."

"Right," Cendo agreed. "Let's take them out."

As the creatures stomped closer, the Pokémon prepared their attacks.

"FLAMETHROWER!"

"THUNDERBOLT!"

"ICE BEAM!"

The attacks flew out off their mouths, aimed straight and true for the creatures. But before the attacks could hit them, the centres glowed even brighter and _absorbed _the fire, ice and electric attacks.

"What the…?" Cendo gasped. "They're not even scathed!"

"I'm telling you," Sparky implored. "We have to go, now!"

"Usually I'd just ignore him on this," Snowdrop cried, "but this time, he has a point. We can't fight them!"

"All right," Cendo cried. "Let's get going. SMOKESCREEN!"

He opened his mouth and breathed out a black trail of smoke which covered the room. Then he and his friends ran for the exit, but as they did so, the creatures charged forwards. Then, just as they reached the entrance out, Cendo heard Sparky cry out, "AAARGGH! It's got me! I can't get it off! Guys, help me!"

Cendo paused to look for his friend, but he couldn't see for the smoke. Just then, Snowdrop's voice rang out, "Oh no! They've got me too! HEEEEELLLLPPP!"

"Snowdrop, Sparky, where are you?" Cendo barked out. "What's going on here?"

"Your friends have joined my masters' armies," the Teddiursa's voice rang out behind him. "Soon they will be ready for their invasion."

Cendo turned to look round, but then, one of the creatures emerged and wrapped its top tentacle around his neck. Cendo cried out in pain as a strange feeling like ice ran through his mind. He fell to his knees in agony and as he looked up, he saw the Teddiursa smile sadly, before its body flashed white and its shape changed.

Then Cendo knew nothing more….

* * *

**Phew, that was my longest chapter yet. My thanks to AlfadortheCat for making Martha a Treecko, and to DotTheAmazing for making Mickey a Growlithe. Sarah, Luke and Jack's Pokémon forms were my idea.**

**See you around**


	7. Missions SemiPossible

**So the next chapter and now the story really gets going.**

**So on with the story!**

Chapter 6: Missions Semi-Possible

The sun was just beginning to set over Treasure Town, when Team PokéHeroes returned back, carrying a wounded Staravia between them. Soon, they reached the Guild entrance and the Bird Pokémon thanked them for their help and rewarded them 700 Poké, a Max Elixir and a Rawst Berry.

"Check it out," Ignatius cheered. "I am so glad we're an advanced group, so we can keep all this money, not like when we were rookies."

"What happened when you were rookies?" the Doctor asked.

"Don't remind us," Rachel sighed. "Chatot always took 'a small portion' of our coins and left us hardly anything." She checked the coin pouch in the Toolbox. "Whoa, we've got a lot of Poké here. I'd better go deposit them in the bank."

"Ok," Ignatius said. "We'll wait for to come back."

Rachel headed back into town and went straight to the Duskull Bank.

"Welcome," the owner said. "How can I help you?"

"Evening, Duskull," Rachel smiled, taking out the pouch. "I'd like to deposit 3000 Poké into my account please."

"Certainly," Duskull said. His eyes glowed and the coins floated out of the pouch and onto the counter. "There we go. Your account is 9000 Poké."

"Thank you, Duskull," Rachel beamed. "See you around."

She then set off back to the Guild, but then she heard voices unheard of in Treasure Town. She turned and saw two new Pokémon walking up to the Kecleon Brothers. One looked like a Treecko wearing a strange red top; the other was a Growlithe wearing a black shirt over its striped fur. As they reached the store, Rachel snuck up behind a wall and listened in on the conversation.

"Excuse me," the Treecko spoke. "Could you help us? Have you seen a Pokémon that calls himself the Doctor?"

Rachel gasped. _They're looking for the Doctor!_

"Hmmm," the green Kecleon thought aloud. "There was a Pikachu who was called that. He's with Team PokéHeroes, they live at the Wigglytuff Explorers Guild."

"Really?" the Growlithe asked. "Is it far?"

"Not at all," said the purple Kecleon. "It's just up that hill. Unfortunately, it's closed for the night. You can rest at the new Vespiquen Rest house down the road and then check on the Guild tomorrow; see if they're not on a mission or something."

"Thank you, guys," the Treecko smiled. Then she turned to the Growlithe. "Come on, Mickey. Let's get some sleep."

"All right, Martha," the Growlithe nodded. "I've found some money in the woods. I hope it's enough…" And the two Pokémon set off down the street.

Rachel ran back to the Guild, her thoughts racing as fast as her feet. _Who were those Pokémon? Why did they want the Doctor?_ Then she shook her head crossly. _Be reasonable, Rachel. They're probably friends of the Doctor, like Grovyle was to me. But would he recognize them? If he's like me, maybe not. Better play it safe and work it slowly, see how it-_

"Rachel?" Ignatius' voice rang out.

"Huh, what?" Rachel looked up saw she was back at the Guild and her friends were staring at her.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked. "You weren't acting normal."

"Oh, um, yeah I'm good," Rachel stammered. "Everything's fine. Come on, let's get to bed."

As they set off into the Guild, Rachel glanced back down the road, as if imagining that from here, she could see Mickey and Martha heading for the Rest house, worrying about their missing friend…

* * *

Deep in the Apple Woods, Sarah and Luke were also getting worried. They'd been wandering the forest for hours, searching for the missing items Mesprit mentioned, but so far all they found were two Apples, various berries and some seeds.

"Mom, I'm tired," Luke moaned. "Can't we stop for a bit?"

Sarah yawned slightly. "All right, Luke. We'll stop here for the night and continue tomorrow."

As they sat down by some trees, Luke spotted a large Apple on the ground before them. "That looks delicious," he said. "I'm going to get it."

He ran up to the Apple, but just as he wrapped his paws around it, a loud voice rang out above him, "HEY! Get away from that. I saw it first."

Luke jumped back in alarm and looked up to see a face peeking through the trees. It was pale, with purple hair, a cross looking grin and a black patch over one eye. "I said, get away from my Huge Apple!" it yelled.

"What do you mean?" Luke cried. "It's on the ground and you're up there."

"No," the Pokémon sneered. "It was in this tree first. I saw it there, but it fell out before I could get it."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Luke apologized, holding the Apple up. "I didn't know."

The Pokémon's grin brightened. "That's alright, kid. I'm sorry I shouted at you. Let me just get that."

Just then, a long arm with a massive hand on the end was lowered to the ground and grabbed the Apple before raising it again. Sarah came up then and looked up. "Hello there," she called up. "What's your name and what Pokémon are you?"

"I'm an Ambipom, ma'am," the Pokémon replied. "The name's Alcazar. You folks new here, or something?"

"Yes, we're new," Sarah nodded. "We're looking for some items that may have been lost around here."

"Just a minute, I'm coming down," Alcazar called out. Seconds later, the Ambipom jumped down from the tree and landed among them. Now Luke could see the Pokémon properly. His body was covered in the same purple fur as his hair and there were three scratch marks on his chest. Luke also noticed that Alcazar's arms were small and thin, and then realized that the hand that took the Apple was actually on the end of one of his tails, the second tail was exactly the same.

"Now then," Alcazar said. "Tell me about these items you're missing."

"Well," Sarah began, "we don't really know which-"But suddenly a loud roar echoed through the trees. Luke and Sarah spun round in time to see a huge creature emerge from the bushes. It looked like a large metal dinosaur, with a silver, horned head, massive claws and a powerful tail.

"It's an Aggron!" Alcazar shouted. "Run for it, you two, I'll distract it."

Sarah grabbed her son in her mouth, and carried him like a lioness would carry her cub. She dashed behind a tree and then turned back to see Alcazar leap back into the overhead branches. The Aggron lowered its head and smashed into the tree in front of it. Alcazar then jumped onto the monster's back and clung on with his smaller hands.

"All right, savage Steel beast," he cried out. "Time for some music to soothe thee." And he pulled out a small metal cylinder, held it to the Aggron's head and pushed it down. A blue light flashed at the end and a soft buzzing noise rang out.

Sarah gasped. "I know that sound." Then she dashed forward, pulling out her sonic lipstick with one paw and tuning it to the same frequency, and called out, "How about we make it a duet?"

She held it up and pressed the button. At once, the Aggron's eyes began to droop and eventually, it fell to the ground and started to snore. Alcazar leapt off its back and dashed off, calling out softly, "Let's get out of here, before it wakes up."

Sometime later, they were out of the woods, where they stopped to catch their breaths.

"Alcazar," Sarah panted. "That device you used earlier… can I see it?"

"Certainly, ma'am," the Ambipom smiled, holding it out in its smaller hand.

Sarah gasped in amazement. "I knew it," she cried. "That's the sonic screwdriver!"

"Sonic screwdriver?" Alcazar asked puzzled. "I always called it a buzzing light-stick. Personally I think my name for it has a more distinct ring."

"Listen, Alcazar," Sarah said. "That's one of the missing items we're looking for. Can we have it please?"

"Sorry, ma'am," the Ambipom replied. "This light-stick is my only chance to find my daughter."

"Your daughter?" Luke asked.

"Yeah, my daughter, Minka," Alcazar sighed. "She was taken by a Skarmory three nights ago. I tried to save her, but that bird was super tough; took out my eye and gave me these scars." He pointed to his chest. "When I came to, Skarmory was gone, and so was Minka. That's when I found the light-stick and discovered its powers. I felt it would be enough to save her." A tear trickled down his face.

Sarah felt sorry for the poor Pokémon, and she sympathized with him. She remembered all the times when Luke was kidnapped by alien life forms – the Bane, the Slitheen and the Trickmaster – and the trouble she went through to save him. Of course she did have some help…

"Alcazar," she said slowly. "Let us help you with that. We're looking for someone too."

"Hmmm," Alcazar pondered. "All right, ma'am-"

"It's Sarah Jane," she interrupted. "And this is my son, Luke."

"Okay," the Ambipom nodded. "I accept your help, Sarah and Luke. Tell you what, you find Minka, I'll give you my light-stick. Deal?" He held out a small hand.

"Deal," Sarah agreed, taking it in her paw. Luke put his paw on too.

"Great," said Alcazar. "Now come on, I know a good place to spend the night."

They came to a large tree, where Alcazar climbed into the branches and rested in a small bend. Sarah and Luke found a soft clump of grass under the tree and settled down to sleep. Sarah stayed up for a short while, looking out into the horizon.

"Goodnight, Doctor, wherever you are," she sighed as she curled herself round her son and slowly fell asleep.

* * *

At the same time, near the Midnight Forest, a small rag-tag band of Pokémon were about to get an unusual new member.

"Come on, guys," Eliza the Glameow called out. "We have to keep going."

"Can't we take a break?" Clayton the Armaldo groaned, from several feet behind her. "It's past sunset already."

"Why are we doing this anyway?" Kerry the Spinarak complained as she staggered after them.

"I told you before," Eliza said. "My boyfriend, Byron, is in trouble. We need to find him and fast."

"Honestly," Feathers the Swellow sighed, flying overhead. "Is it really worth dying of exhaustion just for a trapped Bidoof?" He landed in front of the group. "I say we stop for the night and continue onwards. All in favour?"

"Aye," said Clayton.

"Aye," said Kerry.

"You can't stop now," Eliza spluttered. "We're almost there."

"I know," Clayton said patiently. "But we've been going all day. I'm sure Byron can survive one night before we can-"

"LET ME GO, YOU FEATHERED BASTARD!" a sudden voice yelled out over their heads.

They all looked up to see an incredible sight. A Pidgeot was flying overhead, its majestic head pointed in the direction of the forest and a Buizel in a grayish coat struggling in its talons.

"I SAID, LET ME GO!" the Buizel screamed.

"Good heavens," Kerry gasped. "That foul-mouthed Pokémon's in trouble!"

"We've gotta help him," Eliza cried.

"Right," Feathers said, lowering a wing. "Kerry, climb on."

The Spinarak scuttled on to Feathers' back and the Bird Pokémon took to the air, and flew up to the Pidgeot. As they neared the larger Bird, it turned around, and Feathers and Kerry immediately saw something was wrong. Its eyes were glowing sinister red and there was a strange black thing across its chest.

"What is that?" Kerry gasped.

"I don't know," Feathers said grimly. "But we have to help that Buizel. You know what to do."

"STRING SHOT!" A sticky strand of silk shot out of Kerry's mouth and wrapped itself around the Pidgeot's tail, slowing it down.

"Nice one," Feathers cried. "NOW, CLAYTON!"

The Armaldo gulped slightly. "Oh, I don't know if I should…"

"You can do it, Clayton," Eliza reassured. "It won't hurt from up there."

"Ok then, ROCK BLAST!" The Prehistoric Pokémon smashed out a rock from the ground and flung it with all its might. The rock struck the blob on the Pidgeot's chest, making the bird shriek in pain and loosen its grip on the Buizel… and the water Pokémon plummeted through the air and crashed into the trees.

"Oh no," Feathers gasped. Kerry dropped her silk line, and the two flew to the ground. The Pidgeot let out a squawk of frustration and flew away into the night.

Feathers and Kerry rejoined Eliza and Clayton on the ground, and they all ran to the clearing where they saw the Buizel fall. They found it in the middle of some broken branches, lying very still.

"Is he all right?" Kerry breathed.

"It fell from several feet up onto a hard floor," Feathers stated. "I don't think anybody could survive that."

"Let's take a look," Eliza said, placing a paw to the Buizel's neck. "I can't feel a pulse; I think he's dead."

Suddenly the Buizel let out a strained gasp and sat bolt upright, startling everyone. He shook his head and looked up. "Aw, dang," he groaned. "Another fall from a great height… that is so not good for my health." Then he realized his company. "Oh hi there, sorry I had to drop in on you like this."

"Who… What… How…" Clayton stammered. "You're supposed to be dead; how did you…?"

"The trees broke my fall," the Water Pokémon explained and then smiled at Eliza. "Hi, I'm Captain Jack Harkness. Who are you?"

"Eliza," the Glameow said uneasily.

"Nice to meet you, Eliza," Jack grinned.

"What are you trying to pull, mister?" Feathers yelled out. "How did you really survive?"

"If I told you," Jack replied as he got to his feet and brushed himself down, "you probably wouldn't believe me. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get going. That Bird's heading for Midnight Forest; I have to follow it and find something for a friend of mine."

"Wait, you're heading to Midnight Forest?" Kerry cried. "That's where we're going. Maybe we can help you out."

Jack paused and thought about it for a moment. "Hmmm, seems reasonable. Okay, I accept your offer."

"Hold on a minute," Eliza said. "We're going to find my boyfriend in there. We don't have time to help other Pokémon with their problems; we're not an Exploration Team."

"Now hold on," Feathers stated calmly. "Just because we're not a certified Team doesn't mean we can't help others in their time of need. Besides, we're both heading in the same direction, so we can help Jack with his problem and then we can find Byron afterwards."

"If we can make it there," Clayton muttered.

"All right," Eliza sighed reluctantly. "We'll help Jack out… in the morning."

So the group found a place to settle down for the night and went to sleep. Jack however stayed awake, looking out into the horizon. _Wherever you are, _he thought, _whatever you're doing, I'll find you, Doctor._

* * *

At the Guild, in Team PokéHeroes' bedroom, the Doctor was just about to go to sleep when strange thoughts entered his mind. _Where are you, Doctor? ... Goodnight Doctor… I'll find you, Doctor…_

He shook his head and the thoughts disappeared. But as the Doctor closed his eyes and fell asleep, he had the strangest feeling he'd heard those voices before….

* * *

**And I'm done. So now things get interesting. Also, I'll be away for the long weekend, so the story's put on hold for a while.**

**See you round.**


	8. Dangerous Choices

**So here we are at Chapter 7. Now we'll see how the story progresses. I'm sorry again for the delay. I've been doing a lot of work on my Spyro fanfics and recently I had my birthday and I've been delayed a bit more.**

**So anyway…**

* * *

Chapter 7: Dangerous Choices

Morning broke over Treasure Town, bathing the buildings in a golden glow. The resident Pokémon were up and about, doing their little jobs and running their errands. But two visiting Pokémon had a more serious dilemma.

Having spent a restless night in the Vespiquen Rest house, Martha and Mickey set off for the Exploration Guild, more determined than ever to find the Doctor.

"So, what do we do once we reach the Guild?" Mickey asked.

"We simply ask for this Team Pokey-Heroes or whatever, and ask for the Doctor," Martha replied.

"But, that Vespiquen said only Guild members were allowed to enter. How can we get inside?"

"Well, I'm sure we'll think of something. That's what the Doctor would-"

Just then, a heavy panting sound came up from behind. "Got… to get… to the Guild…"

Martha and Mickey spun round to see a small blue bat-like creature fluttering weakly up the road. Its body was covered in cuts and scratches and one wing was slightly crooked, but still it struggled onwards, muttering, "Must… warn… the others…" Then it collapsed to the ground in a heap.

Quickly Martha rushed to its side. "Poor thing," she said as she examined the little bat. "Hello, can you hear me?"

"Yes," the bat whispered.

"What's your name?"

"Z-Zubat."

"Okay, Zubat," she murmured. "Your wing's been bruised and these cuts look bad. I need to take you to a hospital."

"No time for that," Zubat cried, with a wince. "The Guild has to be warned, Midnight Forest is dangerous. There are things in there… things that are not like us! They've got Koffing and Skuntank! They tried to kill me, but I used an Escape Orb and got away. Please take me to the Guildmaster."

"All right," Martha said. "Mickey, you'll have to carry him. He can't fly with that wing."

"Ok." Mickey came up and lay down on the ground, allowing Martha to lift Zubat onto his back. As he stood up, a smile crossed his face. "Looks like we found our ticket into the Guild."

* * *

"So where to now?" Rachel asked as she and her teammates scanned the Bulletin Board.

"Well, we can't go to Midnight Forest," Ignatius proclaimed. "Team Blizzard took that mission, rescuing a weakened Cyndaquil."

"I'm not sure I want to go there," she said nervously. "Team Fangs hasn't come back yet, like every other team that's gone there…"

"Here's a good one," the Doctor cried as he pulled a sheet of paper off. "A Volbeat needs an escort to his girlfriend in Steam Cave."

"Sounds good," Rachel said. "Let's get going."

As they set off, Rachel then heard Chatot calling out, "I'm sorry, people; I don't have time for outside visitors!"

"Please," a new voice pleaded. "This Pokémon needs your help; he said there's something you should know!"

Rachel gasped as she recognized the voice; the Treecko from last night. She looked round the Board and saw that the two Pokémon from the Kecleon store was talking to Chatot. Then she spotted a smaller Pokémon on the Growlithe's back.

Chatot frowned as he looked over the small Pokémon. "That's the Zubat from Team Skull! Where did you find him?"

"He was heading for the Guild," the Growlithe answered. "We were heading the same direction when he came up. He's been badly hurt and he wanted to see the Guildmaster."

Chatot asked, "Did he say why?"

"Well," the Treecko pondered. "He said that there were dangerous non-Pokémon creatures in Midnight Forest, and that his friends have been taken by them."

"Really?" Chatot pondered. "Well, don't worry, ma'am. I'll see to it that Zubat is properly treated."

"Thank you," the Treecko smiled. "Also, have you seen a Pokémon who calls himself the Doctor?"

"What?" the Parrot Pokémon cried. "He's here?" Then he cleared his throat and composed himself. "I mean, no, never heard of him… sorry."

"Hmmm," the Treecko said. "Okay, thanks anyway."

"Hey, Rachel," Ignatius then called out. "Come on, let's get going."

The Raichu turned round and said, "Coming!"

As she set off after her friends, she glanced over to see the Treecko and Growlithe leaving, but she turned back and thus missed seeing Chatot take Zubat into a nearby tunnel, a sinister grin across his beak…

* * *

Some distance away, Sarah Jane was awake early and snuck off a short distance off for a chat. Before she and Luke had set off on their mission, Mesprit had explained that as Sarah's Pokémon form was Psychic, she could speak to the Legendary Sprite through telepathy if she concentrated hard enough. So now she decided to try it out. She found a clearing, closed her eyes and thought out, _Mesprit… Mesprit, can you hear me?_

After a while, the response came. _Yes I can. Is something up?_

_We found one of the items the Doctor's missing, _Sarah said in her mind. _Do you know what the other item is?_

_We believe the Doctor had a key to the TARDIS, _Mesprit replied,_ but it isn't among the items we found. But my friend, Mew, said he saw the dark force attempting to get inside, so they must have the key._

Sarah then remembered what Alcazar had said yesterday. _Do you know anything about Pokémon disappearances?_

_Yes, Pokémon groups have been seen entering Midnight Forest, but so far, none of them have returned. My friend, Azelf, believes that the dark forces have also been abducting Pokémon outside the forest, but we don't know why._

_Where is Midnight Forest? _Sarah asked.

_Beyond the mountains. The TARDIS is there too. _Mesprit then became serious as she continued,_ but be careful; the dark force grows in strength even as we speak._

_Alright, we will, _Sarah thought. _Goodbye._

With the conversation over, she returned to her son just as he and Alcazar were waking up. "Good morning, Mom," Luke called out.

"Morning, Luke," she replied before turning to Alcazar. "Listen, I've been… thinking about what you said. Was the Skarmory flying towards the mountains?"

Alcazar thought for a moment before saying, "Yes, now you mention it. He was heading towards that way. Why do you ask?"

"Because, uh, I've heard rumours saying that Pokémon have been disappearing in a place called Midnight Forest."

"I've heard them, too," Alcazar said. "But why would Skarmory take Minka there?"

"I don't know," Sarah lied. "But I think our friend is trapped there too."

"Alright," the Ambipom agreed. "Let's head for there."

Luke was about to argue, but Sarah explained her discussion in his mind and he nodded in understanding, but as they set off, a shiver went down his Pokémon spine. He knew that whatever he and his mom had faced before, the danger in Midnight Forest would be much worse…

* * *

Meanwhile, Captain Jack and his new friends had arrived at on the outskirts of Midnight Forest and were now looking out on the tree-lined entrance.

"So, let's see if I got this right," Jack pondered out loud. "Your friend, Byron was it, went into Midnight Forest to investigate the rumours… and didn't come back out?"

"That's right," Eliza purred sadly. "I was desperate to know what happened, but I was too frightened to go in alone…"

"So she found us and brought us here," Kerry finished.

"Why were you guys chosen to help?" Jack asked.

"I have very keen eyesight," Feathers replied.

"My silk is quite tough," Kerry said. "And Clayton here is one of the strongest Pokémon in this land."

"Truth is, I'm a bit of a coward," Clayton muttered.

"Well, let's hope it's enough to save your friend," Jack sighed. "Let's go."

As they entered the forest, Jack remembered the dream he had last night: Uxie told him about his special moves: Water Gun, Pursuit, Swift and Aqua Jet. Earlier this morning, Jack went out and practiced his moves. To be honest, he was glad for some form of self-defense; he felt so naked without his Torchwood weapons.

The moment they entered the forest, the group were attacked by a swarm of Pokémon, some Grass-Types and some Bug-Types. Jack kept several Bugs at bay with his attacks, but then a Weepinbell hit him with Vine Whip and hurt him badly. Feathers took it out with Aerial Ace, while Kerry knocked some other Grass-Types out with Poison Sting and Eliza used Scratch and Sucker Punch to finish them off.

"Phew," Jack gasped. "Good job, guys. We did well… Hey, where's Clayton?"

The Pokémon looked round, but there was no sign of the Armaldo. "He's gone… again," Eliza sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Honestly," Feathers groaned. "Every time we get attacked, Clayton uses an Escape Orb and runs away. He can handle it when they're at a distance, but when they get close, he runs for it."

"It's a little embarrassing really," Kerry murmured.

"Well, not much we can do now," Jack said. "Let's keep going…"

Deeper and deeper they went into the Forest, but strangely the only things that attacked them were Grass, Flying and Bug Types and the occasional Raticate. But despite the few enemies, Jack really felt he was working with a full team again. He could also see some resemblance between the Pokémon and his old team. He could see Gwen's determination in Eliza, Owen's sarcasm in Feathers, Toshiko's shyness in Kerry and until recently, Ianto's shameful secretiveness in Clayton. He hoped Clayton would soon become a more valuable member of the team in future, just like Ianto was for Torchwood…

After a while, the group soon reached the B23th floor. Tensing themselves, they looked around for any sign of attacking Pokémon… but there was nothing.

"Come on, guys," Eliza said. "I can see the steps to the next floor; let's go on to the last floors."

"But what if Byron's not there?" Feathers asked nervously.

"He has to be," the Glameow argued. "Where else could he be?"

"I've got a bad feeling about this," Jack murmured as they approached the steps. "Maybe we should leave before-"

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" a voice suddenly boomed out, making the group come to a halt. "You have entered this quadrant without cause. You will be scanned to determine your worth."

"Who's there?" Jack called out. "Come out so we can see you."

At once, a large figure emerged from the bushes. It was a tall red bug-like creature with bright red eyes, two massive pincers and grey wings. Across its chest, there was a black blob with a glowing purple centre.

"It's a Scizor," Eliza gasped.

"My form is what you call a Scizor," the Bug Pokémon hissed. "But my name is Captain Varbalos of the 15th Prozonite Heavy Infantry."

"So you're alien?" Jack said.

"Indeed, and my commanding officer needs more hosts for our cause."

"What do you mean, hosts?" Kerry gulped.

"It means we have to go now," Jack cried, turning to leave. But then four large blobs with thick tentacles emerged and surrounded the group.

"Just stand still," Varbalos sneered, "and we shall see if you are worthy."

The Scizor stomped over to Eliza and a red beam of light shot out of the centre and swept over her before fading. Then he spoke, "Pokémon Form: Single Evolution. Status: Un-evolved. Type: Normal. Course of Action: Detain and battle it until it evolves, then rescan."

Varbalos then did a scan on Kerry, and said, "Pokémon Form: Single Evolution. Status: Un-evolved. Type: Bug/Poison. Course of Action: Detain and battle it until it evolves, then rescan."

Then Varbalos turned to Feathers and scanned him before speaking. "Pokémon Form: Single Evolution. Status: Fully Evolved. Type: Normal/Flying. Course of Action: Release due to unsuitable size."

"Unsuitable size?" Feathers repeated. "I'm too small for you?"

"Indeed," Varbalos stated. Then he turned to Jack and scanned him. Suddenly he cried out, "Error! Error! Unknown information detected! Status: Not a Pokémon!"

"What?" the Pokémon all shouted.

"Damn," Jack scowled. "Didn't think your scan was that good." He was about to say more when Varbalos thrust out a pincer, grabbed Jack round the throat and lifted him up.

"Who are you and why are you in this world?" the Scizor hissed.

"I'm Captain Jack Harkness," he gasped as he struggled. "I'm human and I'm looking for a friend of mine. Do you know him, calls himself the Doctor?"

"Your friend is needed for our cause," Varbalos replied. "But we don't need humans, so I'm afraid you must be disposed of…"

Eliza turned away as the Scizor tightened his grip on Jack and then she heard a loud sickening crack. When she looked round, Jack was hanging limply in Varbalos's claw, his head lolling to one side. The Scizor then flew up a short distance and flung Jack's body over the trees before landing again and turning to the other Prozonites. "Take the two Pokémon to the ship and lock them in cages. The Bird must go free."

Two of the blobs wrapped a tentacle each around Eliza and Kerry, completely ignoring Feathers, and stomped off down the stairs. Feathers, who had watched the scene with horror, took off and flew out of the woods, without looking back…

* * *

**Phew! Finished at last. Sorry about the delay; bit of writer's block… happens to all of us.**

**See you next time.**


	9. The Monsters of Midnight Forest

**Here we are again, and soon the story's motive will be revealed.**

**So now the story continues…**

* * *

Chapter 8: The Monsters of Midnight Forest

"Phew, what a tough mission that was," Ignatius sighed as he and his friends entered the Guild.

"I didn't think it would be that hard to escort a Volbeat," the Doctor said breathlessly.

"Remember, Doctor," Rachel said, "even the simplest mission is only possible by the amount of Pokémon."

"Well, we got him there safely anyway," Ignatius yawned. "I'm ready to call it a day."

As they entered the foyer, Rachel saw Chatot speaking to Chimecho, their chef. She then remembered the meeting between Chatot and the two visitors, regarding Zubat. "Hold on, guys," she told Ignatius and the Doctor. "There's something I need to ask Chatot."

She walked up to the Parrot Pokémon, who turned and beamed at her. "Ah, Team PokéHeroes," he squawked. "Welcome back. How was the mission?"

"Great," Rachel said. "What's the news on Zubat?"

Chatot's smile faded. "Zubat from Team Skull? They're still out, aren't they?"

"Well, yes," the Raichu said, "but Zubat was brought here by two other Pokémon. You were talking to them earlier this morning."

"No I wasn't," Chatot replied. "This morning, I was with Wigglytuff, discussing our supplies and the amount of Huge Apples."

"What?" Rachel asked. "But I saw you talking to a Treecko wearing a red top, and a Growlithe wearing a black shirt, and you took Zubat away to see Chansey…"

"I can assure you, I've never seen anyone except Wigglytuff."

"What's going on?" the Doctor called out.

Rachel was completely baffled. "Something's wrong here. This morning, I saw Chatot talking to a Treecko and a Growlithe, but now, Chatot tells me he hasn't seen anyone. I just don't get it."

She bowed her head to think then she saw a clump of whitish fur on the floor. On a hunch, she touched it with her paw… and gasped as she saw a vision…

_A forest, constantly dark… the Growlithe and the Treecko facing an unseen enemy… then a flash of light and then… the creatures appeared, black with glowing centres… the creatures launched tentacles at them and…_

"Rachel!" she heard Ignatius call out.

She shook her head and looked round. Ignatius, Chatot and the Doctor were standing around her, worry etched across their faces.

"Was it the Scream again?" the Monferno asked.

"Yes," Rachel breathed. "I saw Midnight Forest… there were creatures of darkness, but they're not Pokémon… Guys, I think those visitors have gone to Midnight Forest and they're in terrible danger!"

At once, the Doctor's face became serious. "Well, then," he said, all flippancy gone from his voice, "we'd better go and help them."

"Are you kidding?" Ignatius groaned. "We only just got back. Besides, we have to get a mission to go there…"

"No we won't," Rachel said. "We've been to Midnight Forest before; we can go back without being asked to."

"Right, then," the Doctor cried out. "Then let's head for Midnight Forest. _Allons-y,_ Team PokéHeroes!"

* * *

Unaware of the dangers happening ahead, Sarah, Luke and Alcazar were scaling the mountains, hoping to reach Midnight Forest. It was difficult going for Sarah and Luke, since they weren't completely used to walking on four legs. Many times, they've stumbled and almost fell down the mountain, but fortunately, Alcazar was there to give them a helping hand, or tail.

But eventually, they made it through the mountains and reached an area of grassland. Alcazar explained that they were in one of the many areas known as Homesteads, where many peaceful Pokémon live. This Homestead was the home of many Bulbasaur, Ivysaur and Venusaur.

As they approached the land, a sudden series of tremors knocked them off their feet. By the time they got up, they found themselves face to face with a massive dinosaur-like creature with a big pink flower on its back and a crown made of leaves.

"I am Dendron, leader of the Venusaur Homestead," it roared. "You Pokémon are entering this land unannounced. Tell us your reason, or suffer the consequences."

"Hello, great Dendron," the Ambipom said. "We mean you no harm. My name is Alcazar of the Ambipom Homestead, and these are my friends, Sarah Jane and Luke. We're just passing through."

"Very well," Dendron grunted then smiled. "I apologize for my inappropriate behaviour towards guests, but we have heard rumours of Pokémon Homesteads being invaded and we couldn't take the risk."

"That's understandable," Alcazar said. "My Homestead was attacked a few days earlier and my daughter was taken. We're going to find her."

"A noble task you're undertaking, Alcazar," Dendron beamed. "As a father myself, I would want to look after my son."

"That's why I helping him," Sarah spoke up. "My son, Luke, had also been… attacked at some time or another, and I've helped him out."

As Dendron was about to speak again, a sudden cry rang out. "FLYING POKÉMON INCOMING! PREPARE FOR BATTLE!"

They all turned to see an Ivysaur dashing up to them. "Chief Dendron," she gasped. "Some Flying Pokémon are approaching the Homestead! They match the description the other Homesteads have told us."

"Get the guards onto defense," Dendron yelled then turned to Sarah, Luke and Alcazar. "I know you've got a job to do, but would you aide us in our protection of the Homestead?"

"We would be glad to," Sarah replied, and Luke and Alcazar nodded.

"Then let's go!"

Dendron led them to where a group of Ivysaur and Venusaur were gathered together. At the back, Sarah saw a small group of Bulbasaur hiding under some bushes. Dendron ran up to the bushes and rubbed his head on a medium-sized Bulbasaur with spots shaped like the Ace of Clubs on its forehead. Then he stomped over to the Venusaur guards and spoke to them then he returned to Sarah and her group.

"My son, Leander, is safe with the other Bulbasaurs," he reported, "and the guards are ready for action. Those Birds won't know what hit them."

"How can we help?" Luke asked.

"Just give my guards any aide they need," Dendron replied. "And keep the young ones safe."

"We'll do our best," Sarah confirmed.

"Here they come now," the Ivysaur messenger called out.

Sarah looked up and saw a large flock of various birds and winged beasts flapping towards them. As they drew nearer, she saw that they all had strange black growths on their chests and their eyes were burning a fierce red.

"Alright, guards, let's get ready," Dendron commanded. "Ivysaur sharpshooters, launch Razor Leaf!"

A flurry of leaves shot out from the Ivysaurs' buds towards the Flyers. But some of them flapped their wings harder and blew the leaves back. Luke had to duck to avoid getting hit by the leaves.

"Venusaur blast team, power up Solarbeam," Dendron roared. "Ivysaur grapplers, catch the Birds with Vine Whip!"

As Sarah watched, light was absorbed into the Venusaurs' flowers, while some Ivysaurs launched some green ropes from their buds out towards the Flyers. Many Flying Pokémon flew aside, but some were caught in the vines.

"Blast team, FIRE!" Dendron yelled

"SWIFT!" Alcazar cried.

At once, great beams of sunlight burst forth from the Venusaurs' flowers, straight towards the Flyers. Alcazar then shot a volley of glowing stars out towards them. But then, the growths on the Flyers' chests began to glow and the beams and stars, impossibly, were _absorbed _into the blobs.

"What the…?" Dendron gasped.

"Did you see that?" Alcazar cried out.

While everyone was distracted, the Flyers pulled out of the vines and made their move. They swooped down, their talons bared, and let out ear-splitting squawks.

"RETREAT!" Dendron roared.

The Pokémon ran for cover, but the Birds grabbed several Ivysaur in their talons and flew off. Some larger Flyers grabbed some Venusaur and took off. A large brown bird with a pink-and-yellow hairstyle swooped towards Alcazar, but Sarah quickly leapt forward and knocked him aside. As she did, the bird suddenly pulled back and swooped towards an Ivysaur. Then a loud cry made her turn round… in time to see her son getting carried away by a large grey bird with spiky red wings.

"LUKE!" she screamed.

"Mom, help me!" he called down.

Sarah fired a Psybeam at the bird, but the attack was again absorbed by the blob on its chest. At once, the Flying Pokémon took off with their respective catches and flew off towards the woods in the south. The attack was over as quickly as it began.

"Is everyone all right?" Alcazar called out.

They did a head count. Of the entire Homestead, only three Venusaurs and ten Ivysaurs remained. Amazingly, none of the Bulbasaurs were taken.

One Bulbasaur ran up to Sarah and Alcazar. It was Leander, Dendron's son. "Where's my dad?" he cried, a look of worry on his face. "I can't see him anywhere…"

The Ivysaur messenger spoke up. "He was among those taken. I'm sorry."

"What happens now?" one of the Venusaur growled. "We can't stop those creatures. There's nothing we can do…"

"Yes there is," Sarah growled. "Those Flyers were heading back towards Midnight Forest, and that's where I'm going… to find my son, save my friend and end this madness once and for all."

"Let me come with you," Leander said. "Those Pokémon didn't take us Bulbasaurs; I want to know why."

"Sounds like a plan," Alcazar replied. "Let's get going."

* * *

Several miles further south, unaware of the dangers awaiting them, Martha and Mickey were travelling to Midnight Forest to investigate. The journey was long, but the two transformed humans kept themselves busy by telling each other stories of the adventures they'd had with the Doctor.

"…So anyway, the Family of Blood were on our trail, pursuing the Doctor," Martha was saying, "and he knew they wouldn't stop following us. So he had a radical plan; he had to become human. He used something called a Chameleon Arch to change his biology and give him a new identity. We landed in England 1913 and hid there for two months. But then he fell in love with this nurse, something which he didn't plan, and then the Family found us and tried to kill us. But the Doctor got his life back and stopped them."

"How did he change back?" Mickey asked.

"He stored his memories in a special fob watch and he just opened it and got his memories back," Martha replied, putting her hands in her pockets. Then she pulled one hand out and opened it. In her palm was a small grey watch with strange carvings on the front. She pushed a button on the top and the watch opened to show the face. "Oh my god, I completely forgot I had this!"

"What, he gave it to you?"

"No, he gave it to this young boy, Timothy," she explained as she pocketed the watch again. "He kept it with him until he died, a few months back. His son gave it to me when I attended the funeral. I just forgot about it."

"Well, maybe it could help the Doctor remember when we find him," Mickey reasoned. "Anyway, have I ever told you about the time I blew up 10 Downing Street?"

Martha was about to say she had, about a million times, when a loud sobbing noise reached her ears. "Did you hear that?"

"What is it?" asked Mickey, his own ears pricked.

"It's coming from those trees," Martha said, pointing. "Come on."

They approached the trees and passed through some bushes to find the crying creature. It looked like a large, ancient insect with eyes that stuck out sideways, spines along its neck, thick sharp claws and a spiky tail. Martha said, with slight nervousness, "Hey there, are you all right?"

The creature looked round and Martha could see tears running from its eyes down its long pointed face. "Who are you?" it whimpered wretchedly. "What are you doing here?"

"We heard your sobbing and thought you might be in trouble," she replied kindly. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just… so miserable," the big bug sniffed, wiping its eyes with its claws. "I feel so awful. I came here with some friends to help find someone… but then, we were attacked by some wild Pokémon and… I thought they would kill me so I fled… and now my friends haven't returned and I don't know what to do…"

Martha felt sorry for this giant Pokémon. "Listen, uh…"

"Clayton," the bug said. "I'm Clayton the Armaldo."

"Right," she said. "Anyway, Clayton, we're looking for someone too. Maybe we can help you find your friends."

"You will?" Clayton beamed. "Oh, thank you so much!"

"And there's no need to be frightened," Mickey said as the three set off. "We'll help each other out."

Soon, they reached their destination, a large forest that was perpetually dark, even though it was a little after noon. "So that's Midnight Forest," Martha breathed.

"That's right," Clayton affirmed. "Rumour has it that anyone who has ever entered these woods hasn't come back."

"When did these rumours start?" Mickey wondered.

"About a month ago," the Armaldo said. "We saw a meteor flying over that area one night. Next morning, a Skarmory was seen entering the Forest in search of food, but he didn't come out. Soon after that, other Pokémon started disappearing in this place. Then the outer Homesteads were attacked and many Pokémon were taken here."

"Well, whatever's in there has our friend," Mickey scowled. "And we have to help them. Come on." And they entered the Dungeon.

For several floors, nothing bad happened. But on the 8th floor, they stumbled upon a morbid sight. As they entered a room, they found the body of a large orange weasel-like Pokémon with blue fins on its arms, a yellow tube around its neck, a grey coat over its shoulders and a tail that was split in two. Next to it, a large blue, red and white bird was struggling to lift the body.

Clayton gasped. "Feathers, it's you!"

The bird looked up and let out a squawk of surprise. "Clayton, what are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you," the Armaldo replied sheepishly. "These two Pokémon found me and offered to help and-"

"Let me see," Martha cried out, running up to the motionless weasel. She knelt down and checked his pulse. "Feathers, how long has he been like this?"

"I don't know; I only just found him," the bird replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I wanted to carry him back, but he was too heavy."

Mickey turned to speak to Clayton and Mickey, but was interrupted when suddenly the weasel let out a gasp and sat up. It then cricked its neck and groaned, "Damn, I hate it when my neck gets broken. It takes forever to sort itself out."

Martha gasped. "There's only one person I know that can wake up from the dead," she said to herself, then aloud, she cried, "Captain Jack Harkness?"

The orange weasel looked over and his eyes narrowed. "Yes I am. How the hell do you know that?"

"Remember how we first met?" she said. "You grabbed on to the TARDIS and flung us 100 trillion years into the future. When we came out, we found you dead. Then you woke up, introduced yourself and asked me my name, I told you, you said 'nice to meet you' and the Doctor said-"

"'Oh don't start'," Jack finished amazed. "Martha Jones, is that you?"

She nodded and they grabbed each other in a hug, but then Feathers pulled Jack away and glared at him. "Okay, Jack, two questions. One: how do you know this Treecko and two: HOW DO NOT STAY DEAD?"

"Yeah," Mickey cried out. "I'd like to know that last question too."

"Oh great," Jack sighed. "You've brought Mickey along too?"

Before it came to blows, Martha managed to calm them down so that all could be explained. Jack told Feathers, Clayton and Mickey about how he was brought back to life and now can no longer die (Mickey was amazed that his old girlfriend, Rose, was involved). Then Martha, Mickey and Jack swapped stories about how they were brought to the Pokémon world by Azelf and Uxie, and their respective missions.

When they finished, Feathers told Clayton about the strange creatures on the 23rd floor and how they captured Eliza and Kerry, but somehow let him go. "Apparently, I'm an unsuitable size for their purposes, whatever that means."

"If only I was with you," Clayton moaned. "I could have helped you guys."

"Listen, I don't blame you for being scared," Feathers said comfortingly. "In fact, I'm glad you're safe and not with those creatures."

"Well, whatever's up there has the TARDIS and the Doctor," Mickey said, seriously. "And we're the only ones who can stop them. Let's go!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in a different part of Midnight Forest, Team PokéHeroes had arrived and were searching for the two visiting Pokémon.

"So these visitors… You're sure they were with Zubat?" Ignatius asked warily.

"Of course I'm sure," Rachel protested. "I saw them as clearly as I'm seeing you now."

"We'd better hurry before they get into trouble," the Doctor said grimly. "Come on."

On and on they went, deeper into the Forest. A lot of Pokémon attacked them, but Ignatius defeated the Grass and Bug Types with Fire moves easily while Rachel and the Doctor used their Electric attacks on the Flying Pokémon.

"I don't see them here," Ignatius said as they reached the 23rd floor.

"I saw them right here," Rachel insisted. "We have to keep looking-"

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" a sudden voice boomed out of the forest. "You have no cause to be here. Prepare to be scanned."

"Who said that?" the Doctor challenged. "Come out and show yourself!"

"Very well, little yellow rat," the voice growled. At once, a dark shape burst out of the trees and landed right in front of them. It was a massive grey Pokémon with glowing red eyes, angel-like wings and pink pearls set into its shoulders, and a black blob with an emerald dot on its chest.

The Doctor wouldn't recognize this Pokémon, but Rachel and Ignatius gasped in horror.

"Palkia," Rachel breathed.

"The Legendary Pokémon of Space," Ignatius added in a whisper.

"This body I picked maybe that Pokémon," Palkia roared. "But it possesses the mind of Colonel Falarx of the 15th Prozonite Heavy Infantry."

"Prozo-_what_?" Ignatius asked.

The Doctor's brow furrowed. "Where have I heard that name before?" he murmured.

"Enough talk," Falarx barked. "You must be scanned to see if you are worthy to serve the Prozonites' cause."

At once, three black blobs with two thick legs and a thick neck with no head emerged from the bushes, followed by a Tangrowth with a blob on its chest and surrounded the Team. Falarx stomped forward and bent down, and a green light shot out from the blob's centre and swept over Ignatius. Then he spoke, "Pokémon Form: Double Evolution. Status: Stage one Evolved. Type: Fire/Fighting. Course of Action: Detain and battle until it evolves, then rescan."

Then it went up to Rachel and scanned her. Then it scowled, "Error! Unknown information detected. Course of Action: Take it to commanding officer and ask for further action."

"That doesn't sound good," Rachel gulped.

But then, when Falarx scanned the Doctor, a warning siren rang out across the Forest. "ALERT! ALERT!" the Prozonite colonel roared. "Binary vascular system detected! We have found him, we have found the Doctor!"

"What?" the Doctor cried out. "You've heard of me?"

"Sergeant Darless, subdue the non-Pokémon," Falarx commanded the Tangrowth. "Prozonites, take the Monferno to the cages and put him into battle."

As one of the blobs grabbed Ignatius with its neck, the Tangrowth stomped forward and shot a fine silvery powder from its body, which blew over Rachel and the Doctor.

"Sleep Powder!" the Raichu gasped. "Hold your breath!"

The Doctor raised his paws to his nose, but the effort made him dizzy. His eyes closed and he fell down on his back. Rachel tried to run and help her friends, but she felt herself growing tired and try as she might, she couldn't stay awake.

As she finally fell into a deep sleep, she heard Falarx growl, "Good work. Let's bring them to the General…"

* * *

**Dun dun duuuummmm… Now the Doctor's in trouble. Don't worry; everything will be revealed next time.**

**See you around.**


	10. Into Enemy Territory

**Hello again, readers. So now the moment of truth… the alien forces are about to be revealed. **

**So anyway… Let the story continue!**

* * *

Chapter 9: Into Enemy Territory

As the sun began to sink slowly into the horizon, the sky took on a deep rosy hue, the clouds looking like floating candy floss. But Sarah was too worried about her son to notice the sunset. She and her friends, Alcazar and Leander, had arrived at the Midnight Forest and were travelling through the various floors in search of the Pokémon who attacked Leander's Homestead. But so far, they found nothing.

"I don't see anything here," Alcazar sighed as they reached the 20th floor. "Are you sure you saw those Flyers heading here?"

"I'm certain of that," Sarah argued. "There's nowhere else they could have gone."

"The Pokémon we met on the lower floors didn't put up much of a fight," Leander murmured. "It's as if they're frightened of something here."

"That means the Flyers are here," Sarah determined. "We must keep going."

As they reached the 22nd floor, the forest became darker and darker as night fell. But Sarah used her sonic lipstick as a torch to light the way. Alcazar offered to use the sonic screwdriver to help, but Sarah told him to save it for emergencies.

"You're worried about Luke, aren't you?" Leander asked Sarah. "I can see the concern in your eyes."

"I love him so much," she replied. "If anything happened to him, I'll never forgive myself."

"I'd feel the same way if Minka was harmed," Alcazar sighed.

"Don't worry," Leander said. "We'll find them. If there's one thing my dad taught me, it's that anything worth having is worth fighting for. He said that he'd move mountains and cross the wildest oceans to save me, and so should you two. You have to do everything in your power to save your kids."

A smile crossed Sarah's purple-furred face. "Thanks, Leander, I will."

Just then, a loud cry of alarm rang out from above them. It was followed by three more screams and a very loud squawk.

"What was that?" Alcazar cried.

"Someone's in trouble," Sarah shouted, dashing towards the stairs. "Come on, let's go!"

* * *

Ten minutes earlier, on the 23rd floor, Martha, Mickey, Jack, Clayton and Feathers had arrived and were searching for trouble. Their journey into the forest had been fraught with peril. Many Pokémon had attacked them and were easily defeated. Mickey used his Fire moves to defeat the Grass and Bug Types, Martha knocked out several Raticates with a well-timed Pound attack and Jack used Swift and Aqua Jet on some Bugs. Clayton bravely took out some Weepinbell with Crush Claw and Feathers finished them off with Aerial Ace.

"So, where are these creatures?" Mickey asked as they now scanned the room they were in.

"They only attacked as we neared the stairs there," Feathers replied, pointing the stairs out.

Mickey glanced around nervously and Clayton gulped, but Jack wasn't at all concerned. "Those Prozonite things were guarding the stairs for some reason, and we're gonna find out why."

"Right," Martha agreed as she stepped forwards. "So what are we waiting for?"

As the others followed her, they suddenly heard a quiet voice call out, "Don't go up there!"

They all turned to see a small pink blob with tiny eyes emerge from the bushes. "It's a Ditto," Feathers realized.

Martha, Mickey and Jack stared blank-faced, so Clayton quickly explained, "Dittos are the most unusual Pokémon in the land. They have the ability to change their form and become any other Pokémon."

"Yes," the pink blob murmured. "My name is Duplica and I've come to warn you: do not go up those stairs."

"Why shouldn't we go up there?" Mickey called to Duplica.

"You're looking for someone, aren't you?" the little Ditto whimpered. "Forget it; whoever you're looking for is already lost. They have your friend now."

"Who are they?" Martha asked.

"He means us," a deep voice growled from the shadowy stairs.

The group turned with a start to find two figures standing on the bottom step. One was a large red Pokémon with powerful pincers and a black blob on its chest and the other was a blue frog-like Pokémon with a red throat, a sharp claw on each fist and a black mass on its stomach.

Feathers gulped hard. "It's Captain Varbalos!"

"And a Toxicroak?" Clayton asked nervously.

"My name is Lieutenant Tezlarn of the 15th Prozonite Heavy Infantry," the Toxicroak sneered.

"Why your mother christened you 'Lieutenant' is beyond me," Jack joked, making Martha and Mickey snigger slightly.

"ENOUGH!" Varbalos yelled then he turned to the shivering Duplica. "You, get back to your people. We're not finished with you yet."

"Yes, master," the little Ditto murmured and she slipped away into the darkness.

"As for you lot," the Scizor sneered, "you must be scanned to determine your- Wait!" He turned towards Jack and Feathers and his glowing red eyes narrowed. "I know you two; the Swellow who's unworthy for our armies, and the smart-mouthed Buizel who's really a human. I don't know how you survived my crushing claws, but now I will destroy you entirely!"

He opened his pincers and reached towards Jack, but Tezlarn put up a hand to stop him. "Wait a minute, sir. We have new orders from the General: all new unknown beings have to be brought to him and he'll decide what to do with them."

"Very well," Varbalos scowled, lowering his pincers. "The rest of them must be scanned."

As he spoke, five black blobs emerged from the bushes and surrounded the group. Two of them wrapped their tentacles around Jack's and Feathers' waist and pulled him back. Then Varbalos stomped forward and shone his scanning light on Martha. "Error! Unknown information detected. Course of Action: Take it to commanding officer and ask for further action."

The same thing happened to Mickey, but when he scanned Clayton, a loud beeping noise rang out as he said, "Pokémon Form: Single Evolution. Status: Fully Evolved. Type: Bug/Rock. Course of Action: Claim and use for invasion force. Take him, take him!"

At once, one of the blobs lunged forward and wrapped its tentacles around Clayton's chest. At once, Clayton let out a scream of agony and fell to his knees.

"CLAYTON!" Jack screamed.

"NOOO!" Martha shouted.

"LET HIM GO!" Mickey yelled.

"What are you doing to him?" Feathers squawked.

"His worth has been proved," Tezlarn growled. "He will be claimed by Captain Megrall and used for our services."

Seconds later, Clayton stood up and turned his head towards the group. But now the blob was completely fused to his body and his eyes were glowing fiery-red. "At last, I have a body," he snarled in a deep voice. "This Pokémon will be useful for our invasion."

"What are you talking about?" Martha asked.

"We'll show you," Varbalos sneered. "Prozonites, take these four to the General. He'll decide the fate of these non-Pokémon and the useless Swellow."

The remaining blobs thrust their arms out and grabbed Martha and Mickey. Then they dragged them towards the stairs. As they did, Martha thought she could see three more Pokémon hiding behind some trees…

* * *

Sarah watched helplessly as the Prozonites took the Pokémon up the stairs. She, Leander and Alcazar had run up to the 23rd floor in time to hear Varbalos' command and see the blobs capture the Pokémon.

"What do we do now?" Leander asked.

"I don't know," Sarah murmured. "These creatures seem tougher than anything I've ever faced."

"Well, however tough they are, they've still got Minka and Luke." Alcazar bunched his fists, both on his arms and on his tails. "We have to get in there and rescue them!"

"Don't go please," a quiet voice said beside them. They turned to see a small pink blob looking up sadly at them.

"What's a Ditto doing out here?" Leander asked.

"Those Pokémon have been taken by those monsters," the Ditto simpered. "There's nothing you can do but get out and warn the others."

"What's your name?" Sarah asked.

"Duplica, ma'am."

"Listen, Duplica," the former human continued, "those creatures have my son and my dear friend. I can't give up on them now."

And with that, she leapt out of the bushes into the open. Alcazar and Leander followed her and they raced to the stairs. Duplica watched horrified as they reached the steps and braced herself for the warning sirens of the Prozonites…

Ten seconds passed… then twenty… thirty…

Duplica opened her eyes to see… and found Sarah, Leander and Alcazar standing by the stairs looking back at the bushes. There was no sign of any Prozonites anywhere.

"Well, aren't you coming?" Sarah called out.

Duplica slipped out towards them – but then the alarms rang out. At once, Lieutenant Tezlarn dashed down the stairs to investigate. "WHO GOES- Oh, it's you, little Ditto. The Captain told you to get back to your people. Guess I'll have to take you there myself."

He grabbed Duplica and pulled her towards the back bushes. Sometime later, he emerged and returned to the stairs, completely ignoring Sarah and her friends, and climbed up to the darkness.

"He acted as if we weren't there at all," Leander breathed.

"It happened before," Alcazar realized. "Back at your Homestead, that Pidgeot was about to grab me. But when Sarah pushed me aside, it flew back and grabbed an Ivysaur instead."

"I don't know how it's possible, but this is our only chance to help our friends." Sarah set off up the stairs and the others followed her.

Alcazar had expected to find themselves in a dark, wooded clearing like the floor below, but this was very different to anything he'd ever seen before. They were standing in a large, artificially-lit passageway filled with strange steel-like objects. Alcazar was reminded of the Magnezone Homestead which was made up of an old rusted laboratory, but this place was much newer.

Leander was equally amazed. "What is this place?"

"It's an alien spaceship," Sarah breathed.

Alcazar was puzzled. "Alien? You mean, like Deoxys, the DNA Pokémon from Shimmer Hill?"

"Er, yeah something like that," she agreed. "Let's see what's down here."

They set off down the passageway, keeping an eye out for trouble. Soon they entered a room and found themselves on a balcony overlooking a massive room. As they peered over the edge, Leander saw a large arena filled with battling Pokémon. In one corner, a Charmeleon was using Flamethrower on a Vigoroth who quickly leapt forward to use Fury Swipes. On the other side, a Staravia and a Vibrava were engaged in aerial combat. But Leander could see the Pokémon were battling reluctantly; there was sadness in their eyes.

A flash of light caught his eye and he turned to see the Charmeleon knock its Vigoroth opponent back with a Slash attack, and then the Fire Pokémon's body disappeared in a flash of light which grew larger and faded, revealing a powerful Charizard. Moments later, a large blob appeared and grabbed the Charizard in a mighty embrace, causing the Pokémon to let out an ear-splitting roar. Then it turned and flew out of the arena, and then a Croconaw came out to fight the Vigoroth.

"This is awful," Alcazar breathed. "Those Pokémon are being forced to evolve before becoming slaves to the Prozonites…"

"We can't just sit here and do nothing," Leander sighed.

"We're not," Sarah scowled. "The Doctor will put an end to this, I'm sure of it. We've got to find him and save him!"

"But who's going to save you?" a sinister voice rang out behind them.

Sarah and the others spun round to see a large shadowy Pokémon hovering before them. Its face was half-hidden by a coif of grey hair, a large red toothy necklace surrounded its head, shadowy wings spread out behind its back and its eye glowed with menace.

Alcazar and Leander gasped in horror. "IT'S DARKRAI!"

"Indeed," the Dark Pokémon hissed. "My infamy has spread across the Pokémon lands, or they would have if it weren't for Team PokéHeroes. But soon revenge will be mine."

"Are you working for those Prozonites?" Sarah yelled. "Where's the Doctor?"

Darkrai started at Sarah's words. "You know of the Doctor? Impossible… However, maybe you could be of some use." With that, he reached out and grabbed the little group. "Come with me… General Belagar would be happy to speak to you…"

* * *

Unaware of what was happening above him, Luke was slowly stirring. As he sat up, he found himself in a darkened room filled with Pokémon. He struggled to recall how he got here then it came to him. He remembered being grabbed by a Flying Pokémon and his mom tried to save him and then he'd blacked out and now he was in this strange place…

"Hey, you're awake," a voice called to him.

Luke turned round to see five Pokémon standing in a row; a grey cat with a curled tail, a brown beaver with a brown spot on its ear, a green spider with yellow-and-black striped legs and a stinger on its head, an orange monkey with a scarf over its white collar and a flame on the end of its tail, and a purple monkey with a hand on its tail and a flower behind its ear.

"Hello," Luke muttered as he got ungainly to his feet. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"I'm afraid you're a prisoner of these creatures," the beaver sighed. "We're in a special arena they built where we are forced to battle until we evolve… and then become part of their forces."

"What?" Luke gasped.

"As for who we are," the cat purred, "my name is Eliza the Glameow and these are my friends, Kerry the Spinarak…" The spider waved a leg. "…and Byron the Bidoof." The beaver nodded.

"And I am Ignatius the Monferno," the orange monkey added. "And this here is Minka the Aipom."

"My name is Luke and-" He suddenly stopped and turned to the Aipom. "Wait, Minka? I don't believe it!"

"You know me?" Minka asked.

"Yeah, your dad's been looking for you."

"He-he's still alive?" Minka burst into tears. "After that Skarmory attacked him, I thought I'd never see him again."

"So, you were looking for someone too," Eliza sighed. "Kerry and I came here to find Byron, but we were captured too… Those things let our other friend, Feathers go free, but Jack… he was…" She broke off with a sigh

"I'm so sorry, Eliza," Byron moaned. "You did warn me not to go to that place and I should have listened…"

"No, Byron," Eliza retorted. "I'm sorry I didn't help you out… I just felt so scared without your comforting paw on my shoulder."

"Oh, Eliza, you had the courage to gather some other Pokémon together to come rescue me," the Bidoof reminded her. "I'm so proud of you…"

Ignatius then let out a sigh. "I sure hope Rachel and the Doctor are okay."

"Wait a second," Luke cut in. "You've found the Doctor? Where is he?"

"He was taken prisoner by these things," Ignatius replied. "I don't know why, but they seem to think he's important somehow…"

"He is," Luke confirmed. "Those things might be trying to take over this world, and only the Doctor can stop them!"

Just then, a light went on, dazzling the Pokémon and Luke turned round to see a Venusaur standing on the other side of a barred door. As it opened the door and stepped inside, Luke gasped. "Dendron, is that you?"

But as the Venusaur drew closer, Luke suddenly spotted a black blob on his side with a glowing centre and the big Pokémon glowered at him with red eyes. "This form used to be Dendron, but now it hosts Major Stranton of the 15th Prozonite-"

"Yeah, yeah, we know who you work for," Ignatius interrupted. "Now what do you want?"

Just then, three more Pokémon stepped into the room; a Charizard, a Golem and a Froslass, all with black blobs on their chests and glowing red eyes.

"We've come to send our next three combatants into the arena," Stranton growled. "Grab the Monferno, the Bidoof and the Spinarak!"

With a nod, the newcomers stepped forward and snatched their targets; the Charizard took hold of Kerry, the Golem grabbed Byron and the Froslass lifted Ignatius over her head.

"No, let me go!" Ignatius cried out. "We'll never fight for you!"

"You will fight, or you'll be destroyed!" Stranton roared. "Take them away!"

With that, the prisoners were forced out of their cells then Stranton turned to Luke. "Now then, little Eevee, I must take you to our other room and decide which form you will evolve into."

He wrapped his vines around Luke's waist and hoisted him up, but Minka jumped forward and grabbed his tail. "Let him go!"

"Yes, leave him alone," Eliza added as she pounced on Stranton's vines and sliced through them with her claws, making Stranton drop Luke.

"So, you refuse to evolve, do you?" Stranton growled. "Then you three will be destroyed!"

* * *

Rachel awoke to a painful sting on her cheek, but found she couldn't move her hand up to touch it. Looking up, she saw a Machamp turn the other way, raise its hand and call out, "WAKE-UP SLAP!"

Its hand flashed yellow and then it swung the palm down. There was a loud smack and a yelp of alarm. Then the Machamp moved aside and she could see the Doctor shaking his head and moaning, "Ouch, really now. I was in the middle of a lovely dream…"

As she looked around, Rachel felt she had woken to a horrible nightmare. All around her, there were literally hundreds of Pokémon staring at her and the Doctor; Pokémon that she recognized all staring at her like she was a deadly threat. They all had strange black blobs on their chests; each blob with a glowing centre, and their eyes shone red like fire.

Suddenly a loud roar brought her attention to the front of the stage… and she gasped in horror. She recognized the glowing eyes, the purple stripes and the flashing diamond of the towering creature standing before her. "Dialga…" she breathed.

"This body may be the Pokémon you mentioned," the monstrous beast growled, "but now its mind belongs to General Belegar, commanding officer of the 15th Prozonite Heavy Infantry!"

Rachel gulped in horror, but the Doctor simply narrowed his eyes in confusion. "I swear I've heard that name before…"

"You should know that name well, Doctor," Belegar snarled, "for that is the name of the force that will lay waste to the entire universe… and you, last of the Time Lords, will be the one who'll make that dream a reality!"

* * *

**Uh-oh! Looks like the Doctor and his companions have a problem on their hands. So now next time, I'll introduce the Prozonite army proper.**

**Until then, I'll see you around.**


	11. Doctor, Remember Thyself

**Chapter 10! I've reached the midway mark in my opinion and soon everything will be revealed.**

**So now let's get going!**

* * *

Chapter 10: Doctor, Remember Thyself

As the booming roar of General Belagar faded into the darkness, Rachel tried to step forward, but she couldn't lift her feet, raise her arms or even swish her tail.

"Don't even struggle," Colonel Falarx growled behind her. "You and the Doctor are trapped in a restraint field, and you will remain there until our forces are ready for the invasion."

"What invasion?" Rachel spluttered.

"There'll be time for explanations later," Belagar growled. "For now, we have more important issues to discuss…"

"Who are these little rats?" shouted a figure Rachel recognized as Cendo, leader of Team Fangs. "Why are they not part of our armies?"

"A very good question, Sergeant Broodam," Belegar snarled. "The one known as Raichu is an unknown detection as yet. But the Pikachu is in fact our salvation for our cause."

"How do you mean?" came the response from a Blastoise who Rachel remembered was a member of Team Bubblebeam. "It looks like an ordinary Pikachu to me…"

"My fellow Prozonites," the possessed Dialga cried, "this Pikachu is not as ordinary as you think. He is in fact the only survivor of the Great Time War, the last of the Time Lords, known to many as… THE DOCTOR!"

A gasp rang out from the crowd, followed by yells of confusion.

"That's the Doctor?" asked a Froslass.

"He doesn't look like a Time Lord to me," said a Snorlax.

"It's true, my soldiers," Belagar replied. "My form bumped into his ship when he entered the Time Vortex to shake me off and the Doctor followed. Knowing about his legendary TARDIS, I sent our servant in to trap him in this world and steal his ship, but his key could only respond to Time Lord DNA and we couldn't enter. So we've sent a search out to find any Pokémon with a binary vascular system and-"

"Hold on a moment," the Doctor interrupted. "I'm sorry but I'm a little confused here. You know my name and somehow heard of me, but me, a Time Lord? I don't even know who you lot are supposed to be, though the name does sound a little familiar…"

"WHAT?" Belagar snapped. "You mean you don't know who you really are?"

"No," the Doctor replied.

"WHERE IS THAT INCOMPETENT DARKRAI?"

"Darkrai?" Rachel gasped.

"You bellowed, my Lordship?" a voice rang out. Out of the shadows came a figure that sent shivers down Rachel's spine. It was the Dark Pokémon, Darkrai. In his hands, he held an Espeon with a red bag, an Ambipom with a black eye patch and a Bulbasaur.

"You," she breathed.

The Doctor's eyes narrowed. "I've seen you before…"

"Yes I bellowed, you stupid shadowy fool," Belagar growled. Then he noticed the Pokémon in Darkrai's hands. "What are they doing here?"

"My lord, I saw these Pokémon wandering around the passageways," Darkrai replied. "This Espeon is particularly interesting, as she knows about the Doctor."

"Really?" Belagar pondered then asked the Espeon, "Who are you and how do you know the Doctor?"

"My name is Sarah Jane Smith," the Psychic Pokémon answered defiantly. "I know the Doctor because he's my friend. I traveled with him and seen things I'd never thought possible. He sent me home years back, but my life had changed because of him." Then she glared at Belegar. "But now I've been brought to your world to find and rescue him."

The Doctor stared open-mouthed. "You know who I am?"

"Enough of this senseless talk," the Ambipom cried. "What have you done with our kids?"

"And my father?" the Bulbasaur added.

"Very well," Belagar roared then he spoke into an intercom set in a nearby bank of controls. "Major Stranton, bring up that shiny Eevee and Aipom from our arena."

"What arena?" Rachel asked.

"Our special training ground for Pokémon who still have some evolving to do," Falarx explained. "Once the Pokémon have evolved, our soldiers come and take control."

"Is that where you took Ignatius?" the Doctor snapped.

Falarx nodded then turned as some figures emerged from the shadows. Rachel saw a Scizor, a Toxicroak and an Armaldo step into view. She didn't recognize the Scizor or the Armaldo, but she knew the Toxicroak as the same one they'd fought on Mt. Bristle two days ago.

"Forgive the intrusion, General," the Scizor buzzed, "but we found some Pokémon with unknown information in the forest."

"Show them in, Captain Varbalos," Belagar commanded.

The Pokémon stepped aside to allow four strange figures to enter. They looked like black starfish with three legs, two for walking and one for grasping prey. They each carried a Pokémon in their clutches. Rachel could see a Buizel with a grey coat and a Swellow then she gasped as she saw two familiar figures: the Treecko and Growlithe from this morning!

"Well, well," Belagar sneered. "This is quite a surprise. But what's that Swellow doing here?"

"He was scanned and deemed unsuitable," Varbalos explained, "but he returned with the Buizel. We had to detain them both before scanning the other two and claiming the Armaldo."

"So you're the ones responsible for these disappearances, huh?" the Buizel asked in an American drawl.

"Indeed I am," the Dialga growled before introducing himself and his senior officer. "And who are you three?"

"Name's Captain Jack Harkness," the Buizel replied. "The green girl is Martha Jones and the dog's Mickey Smith. We're here looking for our friend, the Doctor."

Sarah gasped in alarm. "Oh my… it's you; the ones who helped me in the Crucible and the girl from that Osterhagen thing…"

"When the Daleks stole Earth," Martha finished.

"Oh my God, it's you, Sarah," Mickey cried out.

The Doctor gasped as he felt the words ringing in his head. _Crucible… Daleks… Osterhagen… Captain Jack Harkness… Martha… Mickey… Sarah… Time Lord… TARDIS…_

"Doctor!"

He looked round and saw Rachel staring at him. "Are you all right?" she asked.

"Those names," he whispered. "Where have I heard them before?"

Just then another figure stepped out of the shadows. It was a Venusaur with a black blob on its side and its vines wrapped around a shiny Eevee, an Aipom with a flower behind one ear and a Glameow.

"Ah, Major Stranton," Belagar beamed. "You've brought the prisoners. But what's the Glameow doing here?"

"Your pardon, Sir," Stranton growled, "but she was giving me trouble. I was about to destroy her and the Aipom when you called me up."

"Luke!" Sarah called out.

"Mom!" the Eevee replied.

"Minka!" the Ambipom shouted.

"Daddy!" the Aipom answered.

"Eliza!" cried Jack and the Swellow.

"Jack, you're alive! And Feathers, you're here too!" the Glameow responded.

But the Bulbasaur gasped in horror. "Oh no… Dad!"

Sarah turned and also gasped. "Dendron… what have you done to him?"

"He's not himself anymore," Luke yelled. "See that blob on its side? Those things have taken possession of him!"

"WHAT?" Rachel, Sarah and the Doctor cried.

"That's right," Belagar roared in triumph. "Soon our forces will be ready and the Doctor will lead us into victory!" Then he realized something. "That reminds me… Darkrai, did you remove the Doctor's memories when you changed him?"

"You mean like you changed me?" Rachel gasped.

"Well, yes," Darkrai mumbled sheepishly. "I did sort of remove his memories… because I thought you didn't need him anymore…"

"YOU IMBECILE!" Belagar boomed, making the room shake. "I can't believe I ever thought you would be useful to me! Very well; since you obviously failed the task more dismally than I originally thought, let's see how you'd fare as one of us. Prozonites, take him. Take him!"

At once, the black starfish that held Martha released its grip on her and lunged at Darkrai. With one swipe of its arm, it knocked Sarah and her friends loose and then grabbed the Dark Pokémon in a mighty embrace. With a scream of pain, Darkrai dropped to the floor and held his head in his hands. Seconds later, he stood up and turned round. Rachel gasped as she saw that Darkrai's eyes were glowing red and the starfish had completely bonded with its host.

"Thank you, General, for this new body," Darkrai said in a deep growling voice. "I look forward to our great victory."

"Soon, Lieutenant Feslar," Belagar growled. "Even now, our special forces are nearing their targets and once the Doctor remembers who he is, we'll be ready for the invasion!"

"What kind of targets are these 'special forces' looking for?" Rachel asked, struggling against her invisible bonds.

"As you can see," Falarx growled, gesturing down his stolen body, "we already control the Pokémon of Time and Space. But we need the powers of the natural forces: Land, Sea and Sky."

"We have sent agents out to find these Pokémon," Belagar continued. "And once we control them, we will become the most powerful army in the universe! Nothing will be able to stop us, NOTHING!"

"It's worth a try though," Martha cried, jumping to her feet. "BULLET SEED!" She opened her mouth and launched a volley of glowing seeds straight at Falarx. But then the blob on his chest began to glow and the seeds were absorbed into the black mass.

Rachel, the Doctor and all the other non-possessed Pokémon let out a gasp of horror. But the Toxicroak lashed out a fist and knocked Martha down. Just then, another black starfish emerged from the shadows and stomped towards the stunned Treecko.

"Leave her alone, you bully," the Bulbasaur yelled, charging towards the black mass and bashing his head into one of its legs.

Rachel didn't expect much from that simple Tackle, but amazingly, that attack had quite an effect for the leg suddenly buckled under the impact of the Bulbasaur's Tackle and the starfish fell backwards onto the one holding Mickey and they both tumbled to the ground.

"EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY!" the wounded starfish cried out. "Severe injury to lower appendage!"

"What did I just do?" the Bulbasaur breathed.

"I don't know," said Mickey as he wriggled out of his captor's grip, "but this is an opportunity for us all. BITE!" He ran up to the starfish that held Jack and sank his teeth into the creature's leg.

"EMERGENCY!" the starfish yelled, dropping Jack and falling back in alarm.

Martha got to her feet and swung her tail out into the centre of the starfish holding Feathers. The glowing jewel shattered under impact and with a burbling scream, the starfish dissolved into a bubbling puddle of slag and the Swellow flew out of reach.

"QUICK ATTACK!" Jack yelled and he charged into Major Stranton's side. With a cry, the Venusaur stumbled back and his vines loosened, dropping Luke, Minka and Eliza and allowing them to slip away to safety.

In the confusion, Feathers swooped over to the controls and pushed a button at random. At once, Rachel and the Doctor found they could move and they ran over to Martha and Mickey.

"We don't have much time, Doctor," Martha cried as she pulled out a small round object from her pocket. "Take this and look at it. Remember who you are."

The Doctor took the object and held it up to his face. The object had strange swirly symbols on its cover and when he pushed the knob on top, it opened out to reveal a clock face. The Doctor stared at the watch and then took a deep sniff and his eyes seemed to sparkle. "I know this smell…"

But then, Belagar let out a roar of anger. "Enough of this," he bellowed then turned his head down to look at them. "Tell me, Doctor. We've given you an opportunity to aide our cause for battle; what do you say?"

"Well, general," the Doctor replied, pocketing the watch, "having given this matter a little thought, and in such a short amount of time, I've only got one thing to say…" Then he turned to the others and grabbed Rachel's paw. "RUN!" And they did.

* * *

Down the passages they ran, the Doctor and Rachel leading the way; Jack, Martha, Mickey, Eliza and Sarah were following after them; Feathers flying overhead and Alcazar carrying Luke, Minka and Leander in his smaller arms right behind.

"Where are we going exactly?" Eliza panted.

"For the moment," the Doctor called back, "we're trying to stay ahead of General Belagar's troops."

"And then?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "I think I'm making this up as I go along…"

"That sounds like our Doctor," Martha beamed.

Then Feathers called out overhead, "I see some stairs up ahead! They might lead us out of here."

"Come on," Jack cried. "Let's get going!"

The group raced up the stairs and came up to a large area very like the familiar Dungeon floors from earlier. But in one of the rooms, there stood a large blue box very familiar to Sarah, Luke, Mickey, Sarah and Jack. "It's the TARDIS!" they cried.

The group ran up and pushed against the doors… but they wouldn't budge.

"Why won't the door open?" Martha cried.

"It's locked," Jack growled, "and those Prozonite bastards have the key!"

"Now what do we do?" Sarah sighed.

"Why don't you ask your friend?" a gentle voice called out.

Sarah turned to see a familiar Pokémon emerging from the trees followed by two almost similar figures. "Mesprit," she breathed.

"Hey, Uxie," Jack beamed.

"Oh, Azelf," Martha murmured.

"Well done, Children of Time," Azelf said. "You have found the Doctor and located his ship. Now he can stop the dark force of this world."

"How?" Mickey asked. "We can't even get into the TARDIS."

"You can," Mesprit replied. "It's just that the Doctor has a more simple method than just pushing on the door, don't you, Doctor?"

At once, the Doctor lifted his paw and clicked his fingers… and with a creak of hinges, the doors opened.

The group stared in amazement as the Doctor bounded into the TARDIS, and moments later, Mickey, Sarah, Luke, Mickey and Jack dashed in after him. Rachel was confused at how such a small looking box could hold a large group of Pokémon, but she dashed in to have a look… she stared in amazement and dashed out again, shaking her head in confusion… she ran around the box before running inside again… and took in the impossibly huge room within. Seconds later, Alcazar, Minka, Leander, Eliza and Feathers went inside and had a look themselves, followed by the Legendary Sprites.

The Doctor meanwhile had reached the towering console up ahead and was running his paw up and down its base. "I need to get closer," he decided and pointed to the group. "Jack, would you mind giving me a boost up?"

"Sure thing, Doctor," Jack replied, running up. He picked the Doctor up and lifted him up to the control bank where he turned and looked down at the Pokémon standing at the back. "So where do you want to start?" the Doctor asked

Rachel stared in amazement. "This place… it's bigger on the inside…"

The Doctor nodded.

"What is this place?" Alcazar breathed.

"And who the Blazikens are you?" Feathers demanded.

"Both good questions and ones that until recently I had no answer to," the Doctor replied. "Alcazar's question first: this is my ship. It's called a TARDIS; it stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space. Next is Feathers' question – it is Feathers, isn't it?"

"Answer the question, will you?" Eliza demanded.

"Now I'm not sure how to correctly respond to that one," the Doctor admitted, "but I think my friends can help me with that one."

"He's the Doctor," Sarah answered. "He's the most incredible person we've ever known. He's seen the whole universe's history: the creation of the planets, the many wars, right up to the end of the universe…"

"He's the last one of his kind," Martha took up the reply. "He's met all kinds of aliens and vanquished all kinds of foes many times in their history…"

"He's the only survivor of a war that destroyed his people," Jack added. "And yet whenever there's any kind of trouble in the universe, he's there to put things right…"

"But the one thing that makes him special," Mickey continued, 'is the friends he's made over his journeys. We've all been with the Doctor when our world needed help the most…"

"And right now," the Doctor finished. "This man standing before you… this 900 year old last of the Time Lords… this Doctor, which is who I am, is your world's only chance against the dangers that threaten your very existence. So listen up, because once I've told you about these beings, the choice will be up to you; will you surrender to them or stand against them?"

* * *

**And breathe! Well that was a good place to stop anyway. So next time, the truth of the Prozonites will be revealed.**

**See you around**


	12. The Plans of the Prozonites

**So now the moment you've all been waiting for: the Prozonites' identity is about to be revealed. **

**So now, here we go!**

* * *

Chapter 11: The Plans of the Prozonites

Rachel stared up at the Doctor, concern crossing her face. "So… you're not like me at all? Where are you from?"

"All over the place," the Doctor replied.

"Just one thing, though," Rachel said. "Up until a few minutes ago, you didn't know who you were. Then you got that watch and suddenly you remembered… how?"

"Another good question," the Doctor replied, holding up the unassuming watch. "This little device once held my memories and I used a simple trick to fool my enemies into thinking they were still there… just simple ventriloquism, except I threw my scent instead of my voice. My scent somehow remained on it and once I smelled it, I was instantly aware of whom I was and where the TARDIS would be…"

"You said you knew who those things out there were," Feathers reminded. "Who are they and why are they here?"

"Preparing for our grand invasion," a booming voice rang from outside the TARDIS.

Everyone whirled round and saw General Belagar, Colonel Falarx, Captain Varbalos and several other Pokémon-Prozonite soldiers looming in the open doors. Immediately the Doctor spoke out, "I request permission of parlay as per Convention 15 of the Shadow Proclamation. Accept or deny?"

"Accept," Belagar growled. "Go on, Doctor, tell your friends here about us and our plans."

The Doctor took a deep breath before answering, "Many years ago, the Prozonites were among the most powerful creatures in the universe. Of course in those days, they still had bodies. Anyway, their power came from their psychic energies drawn from the Prozon crystals that scattered their home world. With them, the Prozonites were able to alter the thought waves of any other creature they touch and even gain control of them…"

"What happened to them?" Alcazar breathed.

"We were attacked," Belagar sneered – well, as much as he could with the face of a Dialga. "In the years of the Great Time Wars, the Daleks were ravaging the galaxies, exterminating anything that wasn't them. They found our world and threatened to destroy us all. We did our best to fight back, but the Daleks were too strong for our psychic assault, and they fired their lasers into our planet, destroying it and our forms utterly… By some miracle though, our minds and some of the crystals were still intact and after some years, we were able to pull our bodies together into the shapes you see now…" He pointed his claw to the black mass on his chest. "By then, we had learned that our attempted killers had been wiped out of existence. We knew this was our chance to avenge ourselves and become the true rulers of the universe!"

"How could possibly do that?" Martha asked. "You lost your bodies; the universe wouldn't take you seriously!"

"They could, if they still have their crystals," the Doctor countered. "Some Prozon survived, didn't they? That's why you're still here, am I right, Belagar?"

"Indeed," the general confirmed. "We were able to find some shards of Prozon scattered in the ruins. With them, we were able to build our ships and travel across the stars to conquer the planets…"

"Well, forget it," Rachel yelled. "There's no way you're going to take over our world!"

"YOUR world?" Belagar asked in confusion. "Why would we want your world? Your people haven't even discovered space travel."

"But you said you were preparing for the invasion," Jack recalled. "We thought you were going to take over this place…"

"This isn't an invasion; this is a recruiting agency for an invasion to come." The Doctor's eyes narrowed. "You use other creatures to do your battles for you!

"The Time Lord is correct," Belagar confirmed, "Even though we've lost our bodies, we still had our mind-altering powers. We quickly discovered that we could stick to the bodies of other creatures and claim their forms. With this new ability, we could search the galaxies for the strongest aliens from the most primitive planets then claim their bodies and use them in our conquests of the more civilized worlds…"

"You realize what you're doing is murder…" The Doctor had a look of disgust on his Pikachu face. "When Prozonites go into battle with their press ganged soldiers, they fight until the situation becomes too hopeless then they abandon their forms to a terrible doom."

"That's awful," Sarah gasped.

"Mere casualties of war," Falarx shrugged.

"A war they shouldn't be fighting in the first place," Mickey scowled.

"So how did they come to our world?" Eliza asked.

"Our current enemies live in a world of varying climates," Belagar explained. "The Prozonite High Command wanted us to find a world where creatures had a variety of forms for any weather. We searched for many years until we came to this system and this creature-"He nodded to Falarx's Pokémon body "-spotted our ship and attacked it with his Hyper Beam. We sent Falarx out to capture this being, scanned it and found it was only one of several hundred such beings on the world. So we landed in this forest and began claiming these beings in preparations for the invasion."

"All except Darkrai," Rachel noted. "He wasn't being controlled by your forces until recently."

Falarx nodded as he explained, "When I scanned the memories of Palkia, I discovered he had recently had a bout with Darkrai, so I found him and forced him into our services. He found the places where the most powerful Pokémon lived so we could send our troops out to capture them."

"But I've noticed you only captured certain Pokémon for your invasion," Leander spoke up. When he noticed the confused looks of the others, he explained, "In my Homestead, the Prozonite things kidnapped many Venusaurs and Ivysaurs which is my evolved forms, but never any Bulbasaurs. And I noticed in your arena you never had any first stage of many three stage evolving Pokémon."

"Those forms are inappropriate for our troops," Belagar stated. "In our scans of the other Pokémon we've found, we discovered each Pokémon has a varied stage of maturity. And our fellow warriors needed us quickly…"

"So you've been capturing Pokémon in the second stage of evolving or have two stages of evolution," Alcazar realized, "like my Minka…"

"Or like me, Byron and Kerry," Eliza added. "And then they forced them into battle until they evolved so they could claim them."

"But when they scanned me," Feathers argued, "they found my form was inappropriate."

"Your size was unsuitable for our forces," Varbalos countered. "Anything lower than three feet is considered too small for our services."

"And what about us?" Mickey called out. "When you scanned me, Martha and Jack, you said we were an unknown element."

"Minor glitch in the scan," Falarx mumbled. "You three, the Espeon and the Raichu were deemed unsuitable and require further research… not that it will be necessary for we have enough Pokémon for our plans…"

"And soon we will get our hands on the largest beings of this world," Belagar added, "and finally we will be ready for the invasion!"

"What I don't understand is," the Doctor wondered, scratching the back of his head, "why did you bring me here? What did you need me for?"

"Your arrival was initially an accident," Belagar admitted. "When I captured this Pokémon, he attempted to shake me off by jumping into the Time Vortex. That's when he bumped into your vessel. But after a quick scan, I discovered this was a TARDIS, the vessel of the Time Lords, the Daleks' last opponents in the Time War, and its pilot was none other than the last Time Lord. We remembered that Time Lords had the power to travel across time and space, so we lured him down here and I told Falarx psychically to send Darkrai to the top floor of this forest and have him dash into the TARDIS just as it materialized here and remove the Doctor so we could commandeer it…"

"But the key would only work for a Time Lord," the Doctor finished. "So you sent your troops out to search for me…"

"And now that you're here," Belagar roared, "and you can run the TARDIS and we have the powers of Dialga and Palkia on our side, we can travel back to the time after we left the main Prozonite armies so we could conquer the planet and soon the entire universe will be at our mercy!"

"And if I don't want to help you?"

"Then your friends will suffer a great calamity," Belagar snarled. "Here's a little taste of what we mean… HYPER BEAM!"

He began to charge a beam of glowing energy in his jaws but acting quickly, the Doctor dashed across the console and slammed his paws down on a blue skateboard-like piece of machinery. Rachel closed her eyes as Belagar launched his beam out… but she didn't feel the burning heat of the beam and she cautiously peeked out to see it being absorbed by an invisible barrier by the doors.

"Very clever, Doctor," Falarx growled. "But you won't escape us that easily… We're coming in to get you!"

But as they stomped forwards, the Doctor simply clicked his fingers and the doors slammed shut.

"Right!" he then yelled out. "We're leaving this place and going somewhere safer. And I won't come back until I figure out how to stop you!"

"Before you do," Belagar's voice rang from outside, "turn on your scanner screen. I think there's something Eliza and Rachel should see…"

The Doctor did so and an image appeared. It showed the back of the armies, all staring at the TARDIS with glowing eyes. Feathers lifted Eliza up to the console and Jack raised Rachel up too. As she looked, she could see among the Pokémon were an Armaldo, an Ariados, a Bibarel with a brown spot on his ear and an Infernape. Her heart fell as she spotted a small scarf around the Infernape's neck. "Ignatius…"

"Oh no," Eliza gasped. "Clayton and Kerry, they've been taken… and my poor, poor Byron…"

A solemn look crossed the Doctor's face. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I'm so sorry." And he reached out a paw and pushed a lever down.

A loud rumbling noise started up as the TARDIS started up. Rachel let out a cry as she tumbled off the console. "What's going on?"

"We have to go back to the Guild," the Doctor stated as he scurried across the console, pushing buttons and twisting levers. "There we can plan our next moves… and hopefully save many lives…"

* * *

Outside in the forest, Belagar and his troops watched as, with a roaring noise like a giant's bellows, the TARDIS faded away.

"General, you're letting them get away," Falarx yelled. "We need that ship for our final assault!"

"Don't worry," Belagar assured his second-in-command. "They won't get far…" Then he turned to Captain Varbalos and told him, "Get the Flyers… Find the Doctor and bring him back, whatever it takes!"

* * *

**Now things get interesting. However there are a few holes that need to be filled in and they will but in the next chapter.**

**See you round**


	13. Knowing your Enemy

**Here we are at the next chapter and more holes in the story are going to be filled in.**

**So let's continue the story…**

* * *

Chapter 12: Knowing your Enemy

Dawn was breaking over the Exploration Guild and the Teams were waking up to the screams of Loudred. As they gathered in the foyer for their cheers, Chatot and Bidoof were checking the Bulletin Board.

"Any news from Team PokéHeroes?" Chatot asked.

"Nope, nope," Bidoof replied. "They haven't returned from Midnight Forest…"

"It's a sad moment, this," Chatot sighed. "We'd better tell Wigglytuff the news."

As they turned to enter the foyer, a sudden breeze picked up, blowing the notices off the Board and ruffling Chatot's feathers, and then a loud rumbling, grinding roar sounded. As the Teams and Wigglytuff ran out to see what was going on, a large blue box appeared in the foyer. It was taller than any of the Pokémon gathered, the words POLICE PUBLIC CALL BOX was written above the door and the whole thing rumbled with incredible power.

The doors opened and Rachel and the Doctor emerged, followed by a small group of Pokémon.

"Team PokéHeroes! Thank Arceus you're alright!" Chatot squawked. "But what is this thing? Who are these Pokémon here? And where's Ignatius?"

"He's been taken," Rachel said despondently. "There are creatures in Midnight Forest that steal Pokémon's bodies… and they've got Ignatius and many of the Exploration Teams."

"WHAT?" Everyone cried.

"Afraid so," the Doctor replied. "They're called Prozonites and they want to use the Pokémon to invade another world. Oh, and to answer the first two questions, this is my ship, the TARDIS, and these Pokémon here, some of them were prisoners and the others are my friends, humans like Rachel."

"My name's Martha Jones," the Treecko said.

"I'm Mickey Smith," the Growlithe added.

"Captain Jack Harkness," the Buizel beamed.

"I'm Sarah Jane Smith," the Espeon said as she hugged the Eevee next to her, "and this is my son, Luke."

Rachel pointed to each Pokémon in turn as she spoke, "And the others are Feathers -"The Swellow nodded "- Eliza –"The Glameow purred "- Alcazar and his daughter, Minka -"The Ambipom and Aipom smiled "- and Leander." The Bulbasaur muttered hello.

"You poor things," Bidoof sighed.

"The good news is," the Doctor continued, "I remembered who I really am; your only chance against the Prozonites."

"Wait a minute," Martha interrupted as she spotted Chatot. "Mickey and I have met you before… We delivered the Zubat to you and you said you'd take him to the doctor's. How is he?"

"What… I…" Chatot spluttered. "I've never seen either of you before! And I certainly do not remember taking Zubat to the doctor's!

"What are you talking about?" Mickey argued. "We saw you taking the Zubat away and then you claimed you never saw the Doctor, but you do know him because he's been with Rachel's team the whole time."

"Are you accusing me of lying to you?" the Parrot Pokémon glowered. "I was with Wigglytuff the whole time you were here. There couldn't possibly be two of me!"

"No," the Doctor replied, pointing to the Bulletin Board, "but if Bidoof is with us right now, who's that putting notices over there?"

Everyone whirled round to find a second Bidoof with a dark brown spot on its ear standing by the Board with a piece of paper in its paw. When he realized that he'd been spotted, the second Bidoof turned and ran for the door, but Feathers took to the air, swooped forward and grabbed it in his claws.

"Let me go, you birdbrain," the second Bidoof yelled.

Eliza gasped. "That voice… it sounds exactly like Byron!"

"Really?" the Doctor murmured as Feathers brought the Bidoof back. "But we just saw an evolved Byron back at the Forest, so who is this here?"

The Bidoof glared at him, but then sighed. "All right, you win. Let me go, Swellow and I'll show all who I really am…"

Feathers loosened his grip, and at once, the Bidoof's body began to glow with a brilliant white light, which shrank, changed shape and faded… to reveal a small pink blobby shape in the Bidoof's place.

"It's another Ditto," Sarah gasped.

"Ditto?" Mickey asked.

"It's known as the Transform Pokémon," Alcazar explained. "It only knows the attack, Transform, which allows them to change its shape into any other Pokémon they see. We met one in the Forest named Duplica. She warned us not to go into the Prozonites' spaceship."

"You've met Duplica?" the Ditto cried out. "Is she alright? Are the other Dittos okay?"

"There were others?" Leander asked.

"Hold on," the Doctor put in. "First of all, what's your name?"

"I-It's M-Mirrus," the Ditto stuttered.

"Okay, Mirrus, why are you here and what do the other Dittos have to do with the Prozonites' plans?"

"I thought Darkrai was responsible for the capture of the Pokémon for their forces," Rachel said.

"He was," Mirrus confirmed. "But then one day, a few weeks back, he came to our Homestead and captured a whole group of us, my wife, Duplica and myself included. Lucky for us, General Belagar found us too small and too simple for use in their forces. But then Darkrai remembered how the Pokémon Exploration Teams specialize in rescuing other Pokémon. So Belagar decided to put us to good use and bring strong Pokémon to them, instead of flying out to find them…"

"They used you as bait?" Martha spat the last word out like it tasted terrible.

"All except me," Mirrus admitted glumly. "You see, to get the strong Teams here, they needed someone to post the messages out; someone who could work on the inside of the Guild. So they sent me down here, where I could disguise myself as a Bidoof that they captured and stick fake rescue requests to bring the Teams here… Then the General gave me orders to look out for the Doctor and-"

"Wait a minute," Martha interrupted. "When we came here with Zubat yesterday, we met Chatot and yet he was with Wigglytuff the whole time, which means…"

"That we must have met Mirrus in disguise," Mickey finished.

"Yes, it's true," the Ditto sighed. "That day, I was putting up the poster, when I saw the real Bidoof come in, so I had to change my form again. I disguised myself as Chatot to allay suspicions and I was just about to leave when you two came in. I was quite surprised when they mentioned the Doctor, so after stowing Zubat away, I flew back to Belagar and told him everything I heard."

"Where is Zubat anyway?" Rachel yelled.

"He's in that closet over there," Mirrus replied, pointing to a door.

Croagunk and Sunflora ran up to the closet, threw it open… and pulled out a frail-looking Zubat with a bandaged wing and mouth.

Rachel removed the gag from its mouth and gave him an Oran Berry from her Toolbox. At once, he flapped his wounded wing and shook himself down. "Wow, does my wing feel better," he squeaked. "Thanks, Rachel!" Then he noticed Martha and Mickey. "Oh hello, I never got a chance to thank you for bringing me here."

"Zubat, what happened to you and Team Skull?" Rachel asked. "You told Martha and Mickey that you wanted to warn us."

"Oh yes," Zubat murmured. "Our mission was to rescue a Totodile from Midnight Forest, but when we found him, he told us how we had been scanned and found worthy for their plans. Just then, these strange black things came out and attacked us! One grabbed Skuntank and bonded itself with him and the other grabbed Koffing in its arm. Next thing I knew, Skuntank pounced on me and sank his teeth in my wing. I managed to wriggle free and used an Escape Orb to teleport out of the Dungeon. Then I flew back to Treasure Town, but with my injured wing, it took me a whole day to get there and that's when I met these two who helped me get here. After they left me with Chatot, he bandaged my wing then he gagged me and threw me in that closet! He wasn't acting like himself at all, muttering something about how his masters would want to hear of the news…"

"I'm afraid the Chatot you were dealing with was a Ditto in disguise," the Doctor said grimly, nodding to Mirrus. "But now we know who we're dealing with, we need to know how to stop them." He ran a paw through the fur on his head. "Think, Doctor, think!"

"Wait a minute," Sarah called up. "Back at Leander's Homestead, one of the Prozonite Flyers tried to grab Alcazar, but when I pushed him out of the way, it veered off and grabbed someone else. And back at the Forest, the Prozonites completely ignored us. Does this mean anything to you, Doctor?"

"Maybe," he replied, placing a paw in his coat pocket. "But I can find out with-"A look of concern crossed his face. "Funny, my pockets are empty. Where's everything gone?"

"We have all your items here," Azelf called out as he, Mesprit and Uxie emerged from the TARDIS. "After Darkrai emptied your pockets, we and our friends were able to recover all but two of your things; the key and your sonic screwdriver. The Prozonites have your key…"

"And I already know where your screwdriver is," Sarah piped up. "Alcazar has it." She turned to the one-eyed Ambipom. "All right, Alcazar, we've found your daughter so now can I have your buzzing light-stick please?"

"Very well," Alcazar beamed, pulling out the small cylinder. "I've never reneged on a deal before. Here you go, Doctor, your light- I mean, sonic screwdriver back."

"Thank you," the Doctor smiled. "Now then, let's take a look at you…" He twisted some dials on the sonic then he pointed it at Sarah and scanned her carefully. Then he put on his glasses and looked at the readings. "Interesting… Sarah, your body is emitting some high-level psychic energy, far higher than the Prozonites ever had."

"Naturally," Mesprit replied. "She is a Psychic Pokémon after all. Come to think of it, we've been with you the whole time in the TARDIS, but Belagar's troops didn't even notice us."

"That's right," Mirrus murmured. "I once overheard Belagar complaining about some unusual readings. He said some Pokémon must have entered the Forest but he couldn't see what they were."

"I think he meant us three," a gentle voice rang out. Out of the crowds came a Lopunny, a Medicham and a Gardevoir.

"Oh wow, Team Charm," Rachel breathed.

"You see," Lopunny explained. "Gardevoir is a Psychic Pokémon and Medicham is part Psychic and because I was surrounded by their energy, perhaps these Prozonites couldn't detect me at all."

"Oh, that is brilliant," the Doctor cried. "So now we know that high-level psychic powers can protect us!"

"Also," Jack remembered, "Captain Varbalos said they didn't have any need for humans. Perhaps humans aren't strong enough for their forces…"

"And when Leander Tackled the Prozonite that held me, its leg completely collapsed," Martha recalled.

"Of course," the Doctor cheered. "_Molto bene_! The Prozonites were so dependent on their psychic powers that they became weak against physical attacks. That's why they abandon their victims when they're cornered; they were trying to protect themselves. The question now is, how do we save the Pokémon already taken?"

"What about those crystals? They get their powers from them, like the spiders of Metebelis 3." Sarah shivered at the memory of being controlled by the spiders' queen.

"That's right," the Doctor replied as he whipped off his glasses. "So maybe there's a way to take them out from the source. And I think Mirrus here can help out…" He motioned for the Ditto to follow him and they entered the TARDIS and closed the door.

While they waited, Rachel remembered something else. "Back at their ship, Belagar said they wanted to gain control of the world's natural forces: land, sea and sky. What did he mean by that?"

As if to answer the question, a loud rumbling noise sounded from outside followed by a great crashing noise. Racing to the window, Rachel saw a terrible sight. "The sea's raging out of control! The waves are right up to Sharpedo Bluff!"

Seconds later, the Guild began to tremble and shake, sending the gathered Pokémon sprawling to the ground. "IT'S AN EARTHQUAKE!" Loudred screamed. "MY WORD, GROUDON AND KYOGRE ARE IN AN UPSET MOOD TODAY!"

Rachel gasped in alarm. "That's it!" she cried. "Belagar wants to claim the Legendary Pokémon of land, sea and sky! His special forces must have taken Groudon and Kyogre, the Pokémon of Land and Sea, and now there's only the Pokémon of the Sky, Rayquaza, left!"

"This is terrible," Chatot cried. "Without Kyogre and Groudon, our world will be destroyed completely!"

"Not if we act quickly," the Doctor cried as he emerged from the TARDIS. "There's no time to lose…"

"We have a world to save," another Doctor, this one without a coat, added as he came out too.

"What the heck…?" Mickey gasped.

"It's alright, this other me is just Mirrus," said the coated Doctor. "He's used Transform to become me so that we can trick the Prozonites. Now listen up, this is my plan. If I'm right, and I usually am, the Prozonites will be looking for me and my ship. Jack, Rachel and Sarah, you will stay with us. When we arrive, Sarah and Mirrus will look for the Prozon and find a way to overload it while Rachel, Jack and I will stall Belagar. Meanwhile, Mickey, Alcazar, Minka, and Eliza will use a Psychic Pokémon to Teleport onto the ship and rescue the imprisoned Pokémon and help them escape. At the same time, Martha, Luke, Zubat, Leander and Feathers will fly to Midnight Forest by another route and try to release the Dittos from their prison."

"Sounds like a plan," Jack beamed.

"I'll go with your friends," Gardevoir volunteered. "I won't let you down, Doctor."

With that, she stood over Mickey, Alcazar, Minka and Eliza and with a flash of light, they all disappeared.

"Right, let's get going," Martha cried, as she leapt onto Feathers and Luke climbed onto Zubat. Then Feathers grabbed Leander in his talons and took to the air, with Zubat flying right behind.

"Right," the Doctor said, holding up his sonic screwdriver. "Now Mirrus, stand next to Sarah and let's see if I'm right…" And he pressed the button.

* * *

High in the skies above Treasure Town, Captain Varbalos and several Flyers were soaring overhead when a strange buzzing noise reached his mind.

"Sonic device has been detected," he called to his troops. "Location: the Exploration Guild. It is the Doctor, we have found him. Dive down, dive down!"

At once, the larger Flyers zoomed towards the building and smashed through the rooftop. As the dust settled, they spotted the TARDIS nearby and the Doctor standing close by, next to a large group of Pokémon, including the ones identified as Jack and Rachel

"Do not attempt to resist," Varbalos roared.

"All right, we surrender," the Doctor replied, as he, Rachel and Jack raised their paws. "We'll do whatever you say."

"Enter the TARDIS," the captain commanded, "so we can take it back to our commanding officer."

The three non-Pokémon obeyed and closed the door. Then, a Salamence, a Pidgeot and a Skarmory swooped down, grabbed the top of the blue box and carried it into the air. Then the whole group flew back towards Midnight Forest, unaware of the five other Pokémon, following right behind them…

* * *

**Whoa, now we're preparing for the big showdown. Don't miss the exciting conclusion next chapter.**

**See you round**


	14. The Crystal Brawl

**This is it, folks; the Doctor and his friends are about to face off against the Prozonites! But before that, I wish to apologize for the delay: I had to shift out of range of the Internet for a short while.**

**So now… let's get it on!**

* * *

Chapter 13: The Crystal Brawl

On board the Prozonite battleship, the controlled forces were preparing the vessel for departure when the news rang out in their minds: "The Doctor and his TARDIS have been recaptured. All high ranks report to the control room. Lower ranks will stand by the holding cells."

As several Prozonite set off to their tasks, none of them noticed a Gardevoir appearing with four other smaller Pokémon beside it. As a Feraligatr stomped past, they cringed in terror, but the giant Water Pokémon completely ignored them.

"So the Doctor was right after all," Alcazar sighed in relief.

"I never doubted him for a minute," Mickey reassured. "Now come on; we've got work to do…"

Sticking close to Gardevoir, the little band of Pokémon set off after the Feraligatr down a dark passageway until they reached the cells, a long passageway with several barred doors along its length. There they found a small caste of Prozonites who didn't have any hosts, but they managed to slip past without being spotted and soon found the main controls.

"Now what?" Minka asked.

"Obviously, we need to release the Pokémon from their cells," Eliza explained, "and then Gardevoir can teleport them to safety."

"I can only Teleport about ten at one time and there are a few hundred prisoners," Gardevoir replied with some concern. "If I leave you alone, the Prozonites might spot you and attack…"

"Then tell any other Pokémon who can use Teleport to help out," Mickey answered. "We'll hold off any Prozonites who attack until then."

With that, the Growlithe leapt up to the controls and pressed some buttons. At once, the cell doors slid upwards and many Pokémon emerged from within. As they did, a sudden alarm blared out, "UNAUTHORIZED CELL DOOR RELEASE! PRISONERS ESCAPING! INVESTIGATE, INVESTIGATE!"

"They're coming," Minka gasped.

"Listen up, all of you," Mickey called out. "We're getting you out of here! Get into groups of ten and Gardevoir will Teleport the first group to safety. When she returns, she'll bring other Psychic Pokémon to help out. In the meantime, if the Prozonites attack us, you mustn't use your elemental attacks. Physical moves are the most effective against them. Now, get ready!"

At once the Pokémon split into groups and one ran up to Gardevoir and were Teleported away… just as several Prozonites emerged down the corridor. Eliza let out a gasp of alarm as she spotted two familiar faces at the front of the army: a Bibarel with a brown ear and an Ariados. "It's Byron and Kerry!"

"Intruders detected," Byron shouted. "Capture them, capture them!"

As the Prozonites charged forward, Alcazar, Mickey, Minka, Eliza and the other Pokémon braced themselves for battle, ready to fight for their freedom!

A controlled Empoleon swung its flipper out at the group, but was hit by a Body Slam from a Bayleef. An Arcanine and a Mamoswine charged into the groups only to be knocked back by an Iron Tail from an Onix. Mickey narrowly missed a Horn Attack from a Tauros and then used Bite on the blob on its chest. Minka and Alcazar held back a Charizard and an Aggron with a volley of Double Hit and Focus Punch attacks, while Eliza used Fury Swipes to keep a Luxray at bay.

But while they were fighting, none of them noticed a host-less Prozonite approaching from the ceiling, until it leapt into the battling crowd and charged towards Mickey's group. Several uncontrolled Pokémon scattered in terror as the black blobby starfish stomped through them.

"Guys, look out!" Eliza screamed as the Prozonite reached its arm towards them and grabbed Alcazar.

"DAD, NOOOO!" Minka cried out.

But Mickey could only stare in horror as the Prozonite bonded itself to Alcazar's chest and the Ambipom let out a scream of pain…

* * *

Up in the control room, Belagar and Falarx and many of their high-ranking officers were waiting for the Flyers to return. At last, they felt Varbalos' message come through in their minds and Sergeant Darless opened the blast doors above them, allowing the Captain and his troops to lower the TARDIS down.

With a smile on his borrowed face, Belagar bellowed, "Come on out, Doctor! We know you're in there, and bring your friends with you!"

The blue box's doors opened and out stepped the Doctor in his brown coat, Rachel and Jack, paws raised. At once, Darless and Varbalos stomped forward and grabbed Rachel and Jack in their clutches. As Rachel looked around, she spotted an Infernape with a scarf round its neck. "Ignatius, is that you?" she called out.

"Your friend is now under the control of Major Klenerz," Varbalos snarled in her ear. "He can no longer recognize you…"

"Now then, Doctor," Belagar growled. "Unless you want to see your friends snapped in half by my forces, you will connect your vessel to the main controls of our ship and then when the time comes, set the coordinates of the target planet and activate your dematerialization circuit to send our ship there."

"Lots to do, isn't there?" the Doctor muttered, scratching his long ear.

"We have to wait until our forces return with the Legendary Beasts before we can leave," Falarx reminded his CO.

"Listen to me, Belagar, you can't take these Legendary Pokémon from this planet!" The Doctor's voice was adamant. "The world's placed in a delicate balance with its inhabitants; by capturing Groudon, Kyogre and Rayquaza, you're upsetting the natural order! Once you leave, the planet will tear itself apart!"

"Then it shall die knowing what worthy hosts it's given to our cause, Doctor," Belagar hissed. "Now get to work or your companions will lose their heads!"

With another glare at the General, the Doctor ran into the TARDIS and seconds later, emerged with a long cable in his paws. As Belagar watched with hungry eyes, he didn't notice an Espeon and another Pikachu sneak through the lines, with a quick wink at Rachel and Jack…

* * *

On the level below the Prozonite ship, as the Flyers lowered the TARDIS into the vessel, two more Flying Pokémon with passengers swooped through the trees to their destination. As they landed, Leander pointed to where he saw Duplica get herded off.

"Tread carefully, guys," Martha whispered as they set off. "We don't have any Psychic powers to help us…"

"So we can still get spotted by any Prozonite we meet," Leander finished.

"Maybe I can help you out there," a tiny voice purred from the bushes.

Martha and Luke braced themselves for action but then a tiny pink cat with big blue eyes and a long thin tail floated out from the undergrowth. Feathers, Zubat and Leander let out a gasp of amazement. "It can't be…" Zubat breathed.

"But it is," the cat purred. "Mew, the New Specie Pokémon. My friends, Uxie, Azelf and Mesprit, told me about your mission to save the Dittos so I came to help you. My Psychic powers will keep you safe from this dark force."

"Thanks for that, Mew," Luke beamed. "Let's get going."

Slowly they made their way past the steps towards the bushes at the back. Martha and Feathers braced themselves for the warning alarm of the Prozonites but none came, and soon they stumbled upon a clearing with a large group of Dittos crowded together. Martha could see the Dittos struggling to move. "They're in a restraining field, just like Rachel and the Doctor were."

"We've got to help them," Feathers murmured but then he spotted some Prozonite guards coming out; a Sceptile, a Typhlosion, a Blastoise and a Flygon. "This might be a problem…"

"Not necessarily," Mew replied. "Feathers, you've been rejected by these guys for being the wrong size so they can't touch you, and Zubat has been disapproved too. But you will need some help…" With that, Mew's body glowed brightly and changed shape, becoming a Honchkrow.

"You can use Transform too," Luke breathed.

"I saw them reject a Honchkrow for the same reason as Feathers," Mew explained. "So these forms are perfect for distracting them. Then you, Martha and Leander can shut down the restraining field and get them to safety."

"Sounds good," Feathers replied. "Let's do it!"

And he, Zubat and the Transformed Mew flew towards the guards. The Sceptile called out, "INTRUDER ALERT! REJECTED FORMS INCOMING! ATTACK, ATTACK!"

The Typhlosion launched a Flamethrower at the birds, but they used Agility to avoid the fire. The Flygon zoomed forward and swung its tail out and Feathers countered with Wing Attack. Meanwhile Mew launched a Peck at the Blastoise, sending it reeling back while Zubat confused them with Supersonic.

While this was happening, Martha, Luke and Leander ran up to the Dittos. One Ditto called out to the two Grass-Types, "I remember you two! I warned you and your friends about those monsters."

"Duplica, it's you!" Martha realized. "Don't worry; we'll get you and your friends out of there."

"Hey guys," Luke called out. "I've found the main controls, but I can't reach the buttons. Could you help me up?"

"Hold on," Leander replied, dashing up. He then wrapped his vines around Luke's waist and hoisted him up to the controls. Luke then pushed some buttons and soon, the restraining field faded and the Dittos oozed away.

But just as Luke jumped down to join the others; the Sceptile loomed over their heads. "Do not move, you unsuitable beings! You are interfering with the General's plans; you must be destroyed. LEAF BLADE!"

The leaves on his arms began to glow and he raised them up, but acting quickly, Martha jumped forward and Pounded the blob in his chest with her tail. As the Sceptile recoiled in pain, Duplica Transformed into a Tangrowth and shot out a cloud of Sleep Powder at the Sceptile, putting him to sleep. Then the Ditto sprayed the Sleep Powder at the other Prozonites. Mew, Zubat and Feathers flew up out of the way as the controlled Pokémon got caught in the cloud and also fell asleep.

As Duplica and Mew changed back to their original forms, Martha turned to the other Dittos. "Listen to me; can any of you Transform into a Gardevoir or any other Pokémon who can use Teleport?"

"I can," one Ditto raised a blobby arm and then Transformed into an Alakazam.

"Good," Martha beamed. "Now take the other Ditto and Zubat to safety. Meanwhile, Mew, you must Transform too and get us into the ship. Mickey, the Doctor and the others may need our help."

So Mew Transformed into a Gardevoir and Teleported Martha and her friends onto the ship while Duplica and the Dittos were taken to safety.

* * *

Deep inside the Prozonite vessel, Sarah and Mirrus snuck carefully through the passageway, avoiding the lower ranked Prozonites that stomped past, until they reached a door and ducked inside. There they found a large white crystal that towered over their heads, emitting bolts of yellow lightning.

"This is a piece of Prozon crystal," Mirrus whispered. "With it, General Belagar's troops are able to project the invisible shields that absorb energy attacks and enslave the forces he needs for their battles…"

"Unless we stop them," Sarah finished. "But the Doctor usually gives them a chance to surrender, doesn't he?"

"He did, but they refused to stop. So we must act now-"

"INTRUDERS DETECTED!" a sudden voice rang out.

Sarah and Mirrus turned to find Darkrai and an Armaldo standing in the doorway, blocking their escape.

"They know we're here," Sarah realized. "But how?"

"Darkrai's presence seems to be negating your psychic energy," Mirrus replied. "That's how Belagar was able to spot you when Darkrai captured you."

"Of course, now it makes sense…" Then Sarah started and turned to look at Mirrus. "Hang on a minute; you weren't there when Darkrai caught me. How did you know?"

"Enough talk," the Armaldo roared. "You are endangering the Prozon with your presence. Destroy them, destroy them!"

Darkrai swooped forward and launched a Dark Pulse at them, but Sarah and Mirrus jumped aside to avoid it. Sarah then charged forward and bashed her head into the Prozonite on Darkrai's chest, knocking him backwards. The Armaldo meanwhile swung his claw down at Mirrus, but the Pikachu rolled away safely.

"IRON TAIL!" he called out as he leapt into the air. His lightning-bolt shaped tail glowed white and he swung it round into the blob on the Armaldo's chest, shattering the glowing centre. Instantly, the Prozonite let out a screech of alarm and dissolved into a black puddle of slime, sliding off the Armaldo's body. As it did, the Prehistoric Pokémon gasped in pain and its glowing eyes faded to normal. As Sarah managed to knock Darkrai out, Mirrus ran up to the stunned Armaldo who was now glancing round in confusion. "W-Where am I?"

"You can think freely again!" Mirrus cried out. "Oh yes, am I brilliant or what?"

"Definitely brilliant… Doctor," Sarah smiled. "I should have known it was you. That's Mirrus up there distracting Belagar, isn't it?"

The Doctor nodded. "When I took Mirrus into the TARDIS, I offered him a chance to redeem himself and save his fellow Pokémon. So after he transformed into me, I gave him my coat, told him what to say and asked him to stall Belagar until we destroy the crystal. Sorry I had to deceive you like that…"

"I understand, Doctor," Sarah said. "You've pulled stunts like that in the past. I honestly don't know why I put up with you!"

"Excuse me," the Armaldo interrupted, "but could somebody tell me what's going on here?"

"Right, sorry. Getting a bit sidetracked; bad habit of mine." The Doctor looked up at the Prehistoric Pokémon. "Hello; I'm the Doctor and this is Sarah Jane Smith; what's your name?"

"Clayton," the Armaldo replied.

"Well, Clayton, your home world is being invaded by alien beings who want to use your powers to invade the universe, unless Sarah and I stop them…"

Sarah meanwhile was scanning the crystal with her sonic lipstick. Then she turned to her friends. "Doctor, we might have a problem; the Prozon is emitting the same level of psychic resonance as the Prozonites are. A powerful blow might be enough to destroy the crystal and break the link, but the energy buildup might kill anyone who attacks it."

The Doctor looked crestfallen for a moment. "No… I can't do this again," he murmured. "I can't let anyone die for the sake of the planet…"

"Then you will die for nothing!" Darkrai's voice rang out. "INTRUDERS ARE THREATENING THE PROZON! ATTACK, ATTACK!"

But then, Clayton charged forward and knocked the Dark Pokémon down with a swipe of his claw. "Go, you two," he bellowed down. "I'll deal with the crystal!"

"Clayton, don't," the Doctor called up. "We'll find another way to stop the Prozonites!"

"There is no other way," Sarah reminded her friend. "It's either destroying the crystal or the world is doomed!"

"Listen to me, Doctor," the Armaldo roared. "All my life, I've been a coward. Every battle I face, I run from, and my friends have been embarrassed by my fears. But when that Prozonite held me in its grasp, I felt a rage growing inside of me which made me realize why I was asked by Eliza to help her. It was because we were fighting to help others who were more scared than me, and to learn to hide your fear in the face of danger which made me braver than I ever felt. And now, my friends will be able to remember me with pride."

Sarah beamed at this speech. "I understand, Clayton."

The Doctor nodded sadly and said, "All right, big guy. If that's what you think, I won't stop you."

As they ran out of the room, Clayton called out, "Tell my friends, Eliza, Kerry and Feathers, that I thank them for everything!" Then as the Prehistoric Pokémon heard the footsteps of the Prozonites running towards him, he raised his claws and brought them down into the giant crystal…

* * *

Up in the control room, Belagar watched gleefully as the Doctor finished his work on wiring up the TARDIS to the main flight controls. Just a few minutes more and he would return to the Prozonite High Command and begin the invasion…

Nearby, Rachel struggled in Darless's grasp as she looked at her teammate. "Ignatius, I know you're in there somewhere," she called. "You've got to fight it!"

"It's fruitless to resist," Darless sniggered. "Our control is too powerful."

"It's no use fighting, Rachel," the Doctor sighed. "The Prozonites have won and I have to take them to their great invasion…"

"Come on, Doctor, don't give up now!" Jack bellowed. "You're way better than that!"

"Silence," Falarx roared. "The TARDIS has been connected. Now get into your machine and start it up. The invasion begins!"

The Doctor nodded solemnly and turned to enter his ship but then suddenly the entire ship began to tremble and shake, and the controls sparked with energy.

"What's happening?" Belegar roared out.

Then a message came through from Lieutenant Felsar. "General, the Doctor and his friends have freed the Armaldo that Captain Megrall was controlling and it's attacking the Prozon. I think it's going to-"

KABOOOOOOOMM! The explosion rocked across the ship and at once an alarm blared out. "WARNING, WARNING! PROZON CRYSTAL HAS BEEN DESTROYED! PSYCHIC CONTROL FAILING!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Belagar screamed as he felt his hold on Dialga weaken and he heard the roars of the other Pokémon breaking free.

* * *

Down in the cells, the escaping Pokémon were being completely overwhelmed. Mickey was struggling in the grips of a Houndoom and a Skuntank, Minka had been grabbed by her own father and Eliza was cornered by her friends, Byron and Kerry.

Just then, a loud explosion rocked the ship and then suddenly, the attacking Pokémon recoiled in pain and let out roars and screams of agony. As Mickey watched, several Prozonites slipped off their hosts' bodies like melted ice-cream and the Pokémon's eyes faded to normal. The Houndoom and Skuntank shook off the blobs on their bodies and Mickey launched a Flamethrower at the Prozonites, which burnt them to a crisp.

"Their shields are down," he called to the Pokémon groups. "Our elemental attacks can affect them again!"

"Then let's take them out," Alcazar's voice called out as he pulled the blob off his chest. "SWIFT!"

He launched a volley of yellow stars out towards the Prozonites, cutting off pieces of black flesh from their bodies. Immediately, the Pokémon, those who were imprisoned and those who were controlled, all fired their elemental attacks. Fire burned, Water swept away, Electricity frazzled, Ice froze and Rock crushed. Soon all the Prozonites were destroyed. Seconds later, Gardevoir appeared, followed by a small number of Alakazam, Claydol and Xatu.

"You took your time," Minka yelled. "We were almost overrun."

"I apologize," Gardevoir sighed. "It took a while to find these guys."

"Are they here to rescue us?" Byron called out.

"They certainly are," Eliza replied.

"Alright, everyone," Mickey shouted. "Gardevoir and the others can take us all out of here! The Prozonites are weakened and this is the best time to leave."

The Pokémon groups let out a cheer and ran up to the Psychic Pokémon, and soon they were Teleported back to Treasure Town…

* * *

As Belagar finally lost control and slipped off Dialga's body, he could feel his mind being bombarded by alerts from his lower ranks, all saying they had lost control of their bodies. Then he heard calls from his special forces, some saying they lost control of Groudon and Kyogre and others saying they are unable to control Rayquaza – all before they fell silent.

Nearer to base, Falarx, Varbalos, Darless and the others all slipped off their respective hosts. The Scizor and Tangrowth slumped to the back and dropped Rachel and Jack to the ground. Ignatius flung off his Prozonite host and ran up to Rachel. Dialga and Palkia stumbled around in mild confusion.

"Doctor, you've betrayed us!" Belagar roared out.

"I did warn you," a voice rang out. The Prozonites turned to see a Pikachu exactly like the Doctor bound into the room, followed by an Espeon. "That Doctor there is actually one of your imprisoned Dittos in disguise. Show them, Mirrus…"

The Doctor by the platform suddenly glowed white. His brown coat flopped down in a heap as the light faded and a small pink blob was seen.

"Why, you rotten double-crossing Time Lord!" Varbalos roared, his tentacles twitching in rage. "You'll pay for this betrayal!" And he, Darless and Stranton stomped towards the Doctor.

"BULLET SEED!"

"RAZOR LEAF!"

"PSYBEAM!"

Suddenly, a stream of glowing seeds, a volley of leaves and a rainbow beam shot out from the shadows, knocking the Prozonites back. Then an Eevee, a Swellow and a Zubat charged forward and smashed into the creatures' chests, smashing the glowing cores and reducing them to puddles of goo.

"Are you all right, Doctor?" Martha called out as she, Leander and a small pink floating cat emerged from the shadows.

"Dad!" the little Bulbasaur cried out running up to a bewildered Venusaur and rubbing his head against his father.

"What are you guys doing here?" Sarah called out as she grabbed Luke in a hug.

"Mew Teleported us here because Martha knew you might need help," Feathers explained as he and Zubat flew down. "So we arrived to help, but it looks like you managed to stop them."

"He certainly did," Jack cried out as he used Water Gun to wash back an attacking Prozonite.

"Good job, Doctor," Rachel added as she used Thunderbolt on three other Prozonites and burning them to crisps.

"Thanks for coming to save me, guys," Ignatius called out as he used his Flame Wheel to take out the remaining Prozonites.

Belagar was bristling with anger. "You may have been able to destroy the Prozon, but we'll send a distress signal to the High Command and call for reinforcements!"

"Didn't you hear, General?" the Doctor called out. "You were gone for so long, the High Command gave up on you and tried to invade with other hosts, but they were overwhelmed and forced to retreat. The Prozonites gave up on their invasions and returned to their home world."

"No, you're lying!" Belagar roared. "You've destroyed weeks of planning and now you will face your doom!"

"Not while we can still think for ourselves," a new deeper voice boomed out.

Everyone looked up to see Dialga and Palkia towering overhead. The Time Pokémon glanced down at the Doctor and nodded. "Thank you, Time Lord," he growled. "I knew you would help us the moment I saw your blue box. Now go, Palkia and I will deal with these beings."

"Oh, I've been waiting for this for a long time," Palkia snarled. The two Legendary Pokémon flew into the air and began to charge their attacks.

Sarah quickly ran up to the controls and pushed a button, making the doors open overhead. "Feathers, Zubat, get the Flying Pokémon out of here. We'll use the TARDIS to escape."

Zubat and Feathers called out to the Pokémon and they all flew out the doors and into the skies. Leander, Luke, Sarah, Dendron, Martha, Jack and Rachel led the other Pokémon into the TARDIS while the Doctor, Mew and Mirrus turned to Belagar and Falarx.

"Please, General," the Doctor called out. "You've got nothing left now, but I can help you. I can take you back to your planet and you might get told off with a slap on the tentacles. What do you say?"

"Never," Belagar yelled. "The only thing you can do for us is to accept your doom!"

He thrust his tentacle out towards the Doctor, but Mirrus quickly jumped out and took the blow. He then Transformed into a Scyther and used his claws to cut through the cables that connected the TARDIS to their ship. Then he became a Machamp and grabbed the two Prozonites in his four hands. "Get out of here, Doctor! I'll hold them back."

"Listen to me, Mirrus," the Doctor called out. "Dialga and Palkia are about to use Roar of Time and Spatial Rend. You'll never survive!"

"I won't let these Prozonites harm you," the Ditto replied. "Tell my clan how I redeemed them all, and…" A tear trickled down his eye. "Tell my wife, Duplica, how much I love her. Now go!"

The Doctor and Mew set off into the TARDIS and moments later, the blue box faded away with a booming roar.

"ROAR OF TIME!"

"SPATIAL REND!"

The Legendary Pokémon unleashed their attacks at the same time, warping time and space around the entire ship…

* * *

Some distance away, the TARDIS materialized outside the Explorer's Guild and the Doctor and his passengers emerged into the sunlight. As Mickey and his friends ran up to join them, a sudden distant explosion rocked the entire world and they all turned to see a large black cloud billow up into the heavens.

"What was that?" Ignatius asked.

"That's the Legendary Dialga and Palkia finishing off the Prozonite ship," the Doctor said glumly. Then he walked up to Eliza and Kerry and told them the news about Clayton's heroic sacrifice, while Sarah went to Duplica and her clan and explained Mirrus's final words to them all.

"Is he going to be alright?" Rachel asked Martha.

"Yeah, eventually," the Treecko replied. "He's a bit bitter about seemly pointless deaths, but I think Clayton and Mirrus died to help save your world and that's good enough for me…"

As they prepared to celebrate their victory, none of them noticed two large shadows swoop out of the cloud and into the heavens, the Legendary Pokémon of time and space also celebrating their freedom…

* * *

**And there you have it. The Prozonites have been defeated and some good Pokémon died. The next chapter will conclude this little story.**

**See you then**


	15. Transformations and Salutations

**Hello and welcome to the last chapter in my story. Sad, I know. But anyway, let's finish the story.**

* * *

Chapter 14: Transformations and Salutations

The sun was setting over Treasure Town, and on the beach, the Krabbys were once again blowing their bubbles into the air. Rachel and the Doctor stood on the shore, watching this amazing spectacle.

The Doctor smiled. "It's pretty, isn't it?"

"Yes," Rachel nodded. "Nobody knows why the Krabbys do this, but it's lovely anyway." She turned to look at the Doctor. "So, a Time Lord, huh?"

"Yep," the Pikachu replied. "I'm not like you at all."

"I kinda figured you weren't," the Raichu chuckled. "Back at Mt. Bristle, when I gave you that Pecha Berry, I thought I heard two hearts beating in your chest. I figured it was my imagination at the time. But it was only when the Prozonites found it on their scanner that I realized the truth."

"Yeah, it's quite funny when you think about it." The Doctor looked at the sunset again and just for a moment, Rachel could see a hint of loneliness in his eyes. Then he turned back and said, "Come on, let's get back to our friends."

As they set off up the beach, Rachel thought about all that had happened. For the rest of the day, the Doctor and his companions had stayed to help the Pokémon restore their lives. Rachel, Ignatius and the other Exploration Teams aided them in any way they could, helped by the Pokémon held captive by the Prozonites. During that time, Jack learnt that Eliza and Byron wished to retire from adventuring and make a new home in Treasure Town. Feathers and Kerry meanwhile planned to return to their respective Homesteads and help their friends to restore their lands.

At the same time, Sarah and Luke were happy to hear that Minka and Leander were planning to join the Exploration Guild as a new team, calling themselves Team Smith in honour of their friends. Alcazar and Dendron had agreed to help other Pokémon parents find their missing children.

Zubat meanwhile had reunited with his teammates, Koffing and Skuntank, and explained how Rachel and the Doctor had saved him and helped rescue the others. Team Skull apologized to Team PokéHeroes for bullying them, and Rachel and Ignatius forgave them.

So now, as the sun began to set over the sea, everyone had gone to their respective places, until only Ignatius, the Doctor's companions and the Sprites were left standing outside the TARDIS. As the Doctor arrived, the other small Legendary Pokémon had flown over, carrying the Doctor's odds-and-ends with them. Soon the transformed Time Lord had returned them to his pockets, saying how he'd felt naked without them.

"Right," the Doctor called out. "We'll be off then. Don't worry about my friends, Sprites; I'll give them a lift home."

"There's just one problem, Doctor," Martha interrupted. "I don't know if you noticed, but we're not exactly ourselves."

"She's right," Sarah agreed. "We are still Pokémon. We wouldn't be able to fit in with the others back on Earth."

"My team's gonna have a fit when they see how I've changed," Jack added.

"Don't worry, guys," the Doctor beamed. "I'm sure the Sprites will be able to help you change back… with a little help of course."

With that, he entered the TARDIS and guided his companions and the Sprites inside. Rachel made to follow, but Ignatius held her back. So they stood by the doorway, looking into the impossible room. They watched as the Doctor spoke to Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf, pointing to the central column. Then the Sprites flew up and each placed a hand on the glowing pillar and held out their other hands over the Doctor and his friends.

At once, their bodies began to glow with a yellow light, so bright that Rachel and Ignatius had to cover their eyes. The light grew upwards before fading and Rachel opened her eyes again and gasped. Where before there were a Pikachu, a Treecko, a Growlithe, an Eevee, an Espeon and a Buizel; there now stood six human figures: a man in a blue suit, brown coat and red trainers; two dark-skinned people, one boy, one girl; an older woman with an arm round her young boy and a handsome young man in a blue greatcoat.

"Oh my Arceus," Rachel breathed.

"So those are humans, huh?" Ignatius whispered.

"I used to look something like that, yeah," Rachel replied.

The man in the blue suit stepped outside and knelt down next to Team PokéHeroes. "You see now? This is what we really look like."

"Doctor?" Rachel gasped. "But… how…?"

"The Sprites may have been able to turn my friends into Pokémon, but they didn't have the power to turn them back." A smile crossed the Doctor's face. "Fortunately, the TARDIS had a photographic memory of everybody that passed through her doors, so they used her powers to restore me and my friends back to normal." Then he turned to Rachel. "She could change you back to a human if you want…"

Rachel gasped but then she caught Ignatius's eyes and shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, Doctor, but I have a friend to think of. If I became human again, it would break his heart." She then put her paw into the Infernape's hand.

Ignatius gulped. "How did you…?"

"I've always known, silly." Rachel chuckled at her friend's stunned look and so did the Doctor.

"Seems like you've made your choice then," the Time Lord beamed.

"Will we ever see you again?" Rachel asked.

"If you're lucky," the Doctor replied, looking up to the darkening sky. "If I do see your friend Dialga in the Time Vortex again, I'll come running."

Rachel flung her arms around the Doctor's waist and he rubbed his hand over her fur. "Don't forget about us, okay?" she sobbed as she broke her hug.

"I won't," he replied. Then he got to his feet and went back into his ship. "Oh, and stay out there a moment; you'll love this."

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor turned to the Sprites. "Thank you for helping me out."

"It was our pleasure, Time Lord," Mesprit smiled.

"Now we shall return to our homes and watch over the land," Uxie added.

"Doctor, be careful," Azelf then said.

"I will," he nodded.

"No, Doctor, I mean it." Azelf's face suddenly became serious. "Your time is running out. The White Point will shine once again and it will return from the darkness. Remember, Doctor, your life will end when he knocks four times…"

The companions let out a gasp of horror. Then Azelf turned to them and smiled. "But don't forget your friends, Time Lord. You have made good ones over your life. Find some way to thank them…" With that, the Sprites flew out the door and into the night.

"Doctor, what did he mean?" Sarah asked.

"What's the White Point?" Luke added.

"'When he knocks four times'?" Martha turned to Jack with concern. "You don't think…?"

"Nah, it can't be." Jack shook his head. "He's dead, remember, and his body was burnt."

"What's returning from the darkness?" Mickey asked.

The Doctor was just staring out the door, a look of fear and doubt on his face. Then he shook his head and turned to his friends. "I'm sure it's nothing," he said airily. "Anyway, it's time you lot were taken home." He went up to the console and began to pull switches and levers. "The Sprites tell me they took you at about 8:30pm. So I'll take you back to 8:35pm, so it seems you were only gone for a short while."

Outside, Team PokéHeroes watched with amazement as, with a grating rumbling roar, the blue box faded into thin air. "Farewell, Doctor," Rachel breathed. "Good luck on your travels…"

* * *

_The Powell Estate, London, Earth 2009 Time: 8:35pm_

The TARDIS landed in the courtyard of the estate, and Mickey and Martha stepped out into the night.

"Don't think anybody saw us leave, do you?" Mickey asked.

"No," Martha replied. "It happened in your apartment, so no-one saw anything."

"Well, Mickey, are you going to ask her?" the Doctor asked from the doorway.

"Ask me what?" Martha said puzzled.

Mickey sighed and turned to his friend. "Martha Jones, we've been through a lot together… Stopping the Daleks, saving the world countless times and now after this, well… this might be tougher than anything I've done…" Then steeling himself, he pulled out the ring box from his pocket, opened it and bent on one knee. "Martha, will you marry me?"

Martha let out a gasp of amazement. "Oh my god," she cried as she saw the ring. "Yes, yes I will!"

"Good for you, Mick," Jack called out.

"Congratulations, Martha," Sarah added. "You've got a good man to be with…"

"And we know who to thank for that," Martha smiled. She turned and flung her arms around the Doctor. "Thank you, Doctor, for everything!"

"You're welcome, Martha Jones," the Time Lord replied as he broke the hug. "No wait; soon you'll be Martha Smith, right?"

"Yes, and none of this would be possible if I hadn't met you." Martha let Mickey slip the ring on her finger and then she grabbed him in a hug and kissed him.

With a smile, the Doctor closed the door and the two alien hunters watched as the TARDIS faded into the night…

* * *

_13 Bannerman Road, Ealing 8:37pm_

In the attic, K-9 and Mr. Smith had been scanning the town for Sarah and Luke. They had been worried when Mesprit turned them into those fox-like creatures and flown away with them. Then a loud grumbling roar rang out in the room – a noise that K-9 instantly recognized. He turned round and saw the TARDIS appearing before them. Then the door opened and a figure that the robot dog remembered well emerged.

"**MASTER!"** K-9 called out.

"Hello, boy," the Doctor beamed, bending down and rubbing his robot pet's metal head.

"K-9, are you there?" Sarah's voice called from the TARDIS. Seconds later, she and Luke came out and smiled with joy.

"**WELCOME BACK, MISTRESS,"** K-9 said as he trundled up.

"Where have you been?" Mr. Smith asked. "We've been looking for you all over the surrounding area for you."

"It's a long story, Mr. Smith," Sarah sighed. "But we've rescued the Doctor in the end."

Then a new figure poked his head out the TARDIS door and took in the sight. "Is this where you work, Sarah?" he asked in an American accent. "No offence, but it seems a bit cluttered."

"Now Jack, be nice," the Doctor berated. "Your place isn't much to look at. I do remember seeing it on the computer."

"All right," Jack sighed as he stuck his head back in the door.

Sarah and Luke chuckled to themselves then Luke noticed the clock on the wall. "Oh no, it's getting late and I have to finish my homework." He gave the Doctor a quick goodbye hug and then ran down the stairs.

The Doctor smiled. "Life goes on, eh, Sarah?"

"Yes," Sarah sighed. "In a few months time, he'll finish school and be off to university."

"They grow up so fast," the Doctor said.

"Not fast enough for me," she replied. Then she turned to the Doctor. "Will you be alright?"

"Yeah, I will," the Time Lord said. "And you?"

"As long as I've got Luke, Mr. Smith and K-9 with me, I will be."

The Doctor then threw his arms around Sarah and squeezed her. Then he turned to the two machines. "You'll look out for her, won't you?"

"**AFFIRMATIVE, MASTER."** K-9 nodded his head and wiggled his ears.

"Of course we will, Doctor," Mr. Smith agreed. "Good luck with your travels."

With a smile, the Doctor entered his ship and moments later, the TARDIS disappeared…

* * *

_Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff 8:40pm_

In the centre of the square, the TARDIS arrived and Jack and the Doctor stepped outside and headed for the waterfall nearby.

"See that?" Jack pointed to an ordinary paving stone in front of the tower. "Your ship landed here and left a trace of its perception filter. Now we use it as an emergency escape hatch or as an entry whenever Ianto loses his keys. Watch…" And he jumped onto the stone.

"It won't work on me," the Doctor told him. "But I'll take your word for it."

Just then, Jack heard a loud ringing in his ear and switched on his headset. "Hello?"

"Jack, it's Gwen," a voice replied. "Where have you been? I've been trying to get to you for half an hour."

"Um, it's complicated," Jack said. "What's the problem?"

"Something's interfering with the television set," Gwen explained. "Rhys checked the aerial but it hasn't changed. I called Ianto and he's got the same problem.

"Hmmm, sounds like some Tryskites are in our airspace again," Jack told her. "Okay, you and Ianto get to base immediately and bring some tin foil."

"Okay, see you soon, Jack." And she hung up.

"Well, I've got work to do and so do you." Jack held out his hand and the Doctor shook it. "You take care of yourself now."

"I will," the Time Lord nodded. "Keep up the good work, Jack. Cardiff needs heroes like you and your team."

With that, Jack pressed a button on his wrist pad and the slab sank into the ground, taking the captain down into the Torchwood Hub. The Doctor turned and walked back to the TARDIS.

* * *

Inside his vessel, the Doctor threw his coat aside and ran his hand across the console. His mind was filled with the memories of the friends he had made in this adventure. He thought of Rachel and Ignatius working for the Exploration Guild, of Mickey and Martha and the new life they would be sharing, of Sarah Jane looking after her son Luke, and of Captain Jack and his team fighting for the future on behalf of the human race.

Then he thought of Azelf's parting message and of the other warnings given to him. _I think your song must end soon… It is returning through the dark… The Gate is waiting for you… The White Point will shine once more… And then, Doctor, oh then… he will knock four times… Don't forget your friends, Time Lord…_

"I won't, Azelf," the Doctor promised silently. "I won't." He had made a lot of good friends in his life; some stuck around for the ride, others went back to their lives. But they all reserved special places in the Time Lord's hearts – and he would never forget them.

With that in mind, he pulled down the lever and sent his TARDIS on its way, to adventures new…

* * *

**And there you have it. My story has come to a close.**

**My thanks go to all the people who read and reviewed this tale; especially to Cylon One for noting the errors in my texts and informing me of them. Thank you, Russell T Davies for bringing back the Doctor, to David Tennant for making his portrayal of the Time Lord the most enjoyable to work with and to Matt Smith, best of luck with your new series. Hope it's as good as your last one.**

**Thanks for reading this. Goodnight (or goodbye, depending on your time zone)**


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